2. VIEW OF RUINS OF FINE ORE MILL (FEATURE 20), ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. VIEW OF RUINS OF FINE ORE MILL (FEATURE 20), FACING NORTH-NORTHWEST. PORTION OF HEADFRAME AND STORAGE TANKS (FEATURE 18) VISIBLE IN UPPER RIGHT CORNER OF PHOTOGRAPH. - Copper Canyon Camp of the International Smelting & Refining Company, Ruins of the Fine Ore Mill, Copper Canyon, Battle Mountain, Lander County, NV

4. VIEW OF RUINS OF FINE ORE MILL (FEATURE 20), ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. VIEW OF RUINS OF FINE ORE MILL (FEATURE 20), FACING SOUTHEAST. - Copper Canyon Camp of the International Smelting & Refining Company, Ruins of the Fine Ore Mill, Copper Canyon, Battle Mountain, Lander County, NV

Censored rainfall modelling for estimation of fine-scale extremes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cross, David; Onof, Christian; Winter, Hugo; Bernardara, Pietro

2018-01-01

Reliable estimation of rainfall extremes is essential for drainage system design, flood mitigation, and risk quantification. However, traditional techniques lack physical realism and extrapolation can be highly uncertain. In this study, we improve the physical basis for short-duration extreme rainfall estimation by simulating the heavy portion of the rainfall record mechanistically using the Bartlett-Lewis rectangular pulse (BLRP) model. Mechanistic rainfall models have had a tendency to underestimate rainfall extremes at fine temporal scales. Despite this, the simple process representation of rectangular pulse models is appealing in the context of extreme rainfall estimation because it emulates the known phenomenology of rainfall generation. A censored approach to Bartlett-Lewis model calibration is proposed and performed for single-site rainfall from two gauges in the UK and Germany. Extreme rainfall estimation is performed for each gauge at the 5, 15, and 60 min resolutions, and considerations for censor selection discussed.

Microhabitats in the tropics buffer temperature in a globally coherent manner

PubMed Central

Scheffers, Brett R.; Evans, Theodore A.; Williams, Stephen E.; Edwards, David P.

2014-01-01

Vegetated habitats contain a variety of fine-scale features that can ameliorate temperate extremes. These buffered microhabitats may be used by species to evade extreme weather and novel climates in the future. Yet, the magnitude and extent of this buffering on a global scale remains unknown. Across all tropical continents and using 36 published studies, we assessed temperature buffering from within microhabitats across various habitat strata and structures (e.g. soil, logs, epiphytes and tree holes) and compared them to non-buffered macro-scale ambient temperatures (the thermal control). Microhabitats buffered temperature by 3.9°C and reduced maximum temperatures by 3.5°C. Buffering was most pronounced in tropical lowlands where temperatures were most variable. With the expected increase in extreme weather events, microhabitats should provide species with a local layer of protection that is not captured by traditional climate assessments, which are typically derived from macro-scale temperatures (e.g. satellites). Our data illustrate the need for a next generation of predictive models that account for species' ability to move within microhabitats to exploit favourable buffered microclimates. PMID:25540160

The Narrow Cold-Frontal Rainband of 22/23 November 2013

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kidd, Christopher

2015-01-01

The recent paper in Weather by Young (2014) provided a detailed analysis of an intensive cold front as it passed over the UK on 2223 November 2013. This was an extremely good example of linear convection, as it is described in the paper, or a narrow cold-frontal rainband (NCFR; Hobbs and Biswas, 1979). These features are associated with a low-level jet that lies ahead and parallel to the surface cold front, generating a band of intense but relatively shallow convection (see Koch and Kocin, 1991). Although the structure associated with these systems is not uncommon (e.g. Gatzen, 2011), this case was notable for the (linear) length and the longevity of the feature. Critically, fine-scale radar observations using the 1km, 5min UK composite radar product, produced by the UK Met Office and supplied by the British Atmospheric Data Centre, enabled the timing and progression of the most intense band of this feature tobe examined (see Figure 1).

Modeling the Influence of Injection Modes on the Evolution of Solution Sprays in a Plasma Jet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shan, Y.; Coyle, T. W.; Mostaghimi, J.

2010-01-01

Solution precursor plasma spraying (SPPS) is a novel technology with great potential for depositing finely structured ceramic coatings with nano- and sub-micrometric features. The solution is injected into the plasma jet either as a liquid stream or gas atomized droplets. Solution droplets or the stream interact with the plasma jet and break up into fine droplets. The solvent vaporizes very fast as the droplets travel downstream. Solid particles are finally formed, and the particle are heated up and accelerated to the substrate to generate the coating. The deposition process and the properties of coatings obtained are extremely sensitive to the process parameters, such as torch operating conditions, injection modes, injection parameters, and substrate temperatures. This article numerically investigates the effect of injection modes, a liquid stream injection and a gas-blast injection, on the size distribution of injected droplets. The particle/droplet size, temperature, and position distributions on the substrate are predicted for different injection modes.

Rosai-Dorfman disease of the breast in a male: a case report.

PubMed

Bansal, Pankaj; Chakraborti, Shrijeet; Krishnanand, Geeta; Bansal, Rohini

2010-01-01

Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD), or sinus histiocytosis with massive lymphadenopathy, is a benign, self-limiting disease. In the majority of cases, there is massive and painless lymphadenopathy in any lymph node group but most commonly in the cervical lymph nodes, associated with constitutional symptoms. Extranodal involvement has been reported to occur in almost every organ system, with or without concomitant nodal disease. The breast is a rare site of presentation of this disease. A 35-year-old male presented with a hard, nodular swelling in the lower and outer quadrant of the right breast, with a clinical suspicion of malignancy. A diagnosis of sinus histiocytosis with massive lymphadenopathy, or RDD, was offered based on the presence of numerous lymphocytes, plasma cells, a few neutrophils and large histiocytes showing emperipolesis in fine needle aspiration smears. Mammary RDD is extremely rare in males. The cytologic features are fairly characteristic and should be considered in the differential diagnosis whenever atypical histiocytes and emperipolesis are encountered in fine needle aspiration smears.

Cytologic diagnosis of medullary carcinoma of the thyroid gland.

PubMed

Papaparaskeva, K; Nagel, H; Droese, M

2000-06-01

The cytomorphologic features in fine-needle aspiration (FNA) biopsies from 91 histologiacally verified medullary carcinomas of the thyroid (MCT) were investigated. FNA was able to diagnose neoplasms with indications of surgical removal in 98.9% of cases and moreover, was accurate in specific tumor typing in 89% of cases. The most important cytologic criteria of MCT with FNA are: dispersed cell-pattern of polygonal or triangular cells, azurophilic cytoplasmic granules, and extremely eccentrically placed nuclei with coarse granular chromatin and amyloid. These and other cytologic features of MCT are discussed in detail. Fourteen cases of thyroid tumors originally diagnosed as MCT by cytology are illustrated to discuss the differential diagnosis of MCT and its potential pitfalls. If MCT is cytologically presumed but amyloid and azurophilic cytoplasmic granules are not demonstrated, the use of immunostaining is necessary for a correct tumor typing. The application of immunocytochemistry in MCT is discussed. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Automated Camera Array Fine Calibration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clouse, Daniel; Padgett, Curtis; Ansar, Adnan; Cheng, Yang

2008-01-01

Using aerial imagery, the JPL FineCalibration (JPL FineCal) software automatically tunes a set of existing CAHVOR camera models for an array of cameras. The software finds matching features in the overlap region between images from adjacent cameras, and uses these features to refine the camera models. It is not necessary to take special imagery of a known target and no surveying is required. JPL FineCal was developed for use with an aerial, persistent surveillance platform.

Fine-scale hydrodynamics influence the spatio-temporal distribution of harbour porpoises at a coastal hotspot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, A. R.; Hosegood, P.; Wynn, R. B.; De Boer, M. N.; Butler-Cowdry, S.; Embling, C. B.

2014-11-01

The coastal Runnelstone Reef, off southwest Cornwall (UK), is characterised by complex topography and strong tidal flows and is a known high-density site for harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena); a European protected species. Using a multidisciplinary dataset including: porpoise sightings from a multi-year land-based survey, Acoustic Doppler Current Profiling (ADCP), vertical profiling of water properties and high-resolution bathymetry; we investigate how interactions between tidal flow and topography drive the fine-scale porpoise spatio-temporal distribution at the site. Porpoise sightings were distributed non-uniformly within the survey area with highest sighting density recorded in areas with steep slopes and moderate depths. Greater numbers of sightings were recorded during strong westward (ebbing) tidal flows compared to strong eastward (flooding) flows and slack water periods. ADCP and Conductivity Temperature Depth (CTD) data identified fine-scale hydrodynamic features, associated with cross-reef tidal flows in the sections of the survey area with the highest recorded densities of porpoises. We observed layered, vertically sheared flows that were susceptible to the generation of turbulence by shear instability. Additionally, the intense, oscillatory near surface currents led to hydraulically controlled flow that transitioned from subcritical to supercritical conditions; indicating that highly turbulent and energetic hydraulic jumps were generated along the eastern and western slopes of the reef. The depression and release of isopycnals in the lee of the reef during cross-reef flows revealed that the flow released lee waves during upslope currents at specific phases of the tidal cycle when the highest sighting rates were recorded. The results of this unique, fine-scale field study provide new insights into specific hydrodynamic features, produced through tidal forcing, that may be important for creating predictable foraging opportunities for porpoises at a local scale. Information on the functional mechanisms linking porpoise distribution to static and dynamic physical habitat variables is extremely valuable to the monitoring and management of the species within the context of European conservation policies and marine renewable energy infrastructure development.

Extreme temperature robust optical sensor designs and fault-tolerant signal processing

DOEpatents

Riza, Nabeel Agha [Oviedo, FL; Perez, Frank [Tujunga, CA

2012-01-17

Silicon Carbide (SiC) probe designs for extreme temperature and pressure sensing uses a single crystal SiC optical chip encased in a sintered SiC material probe. The SiC chip may be protected for high temperature only use or exposed for both temperature and pressure sensing. Hybrid signal processing techniques allow fault-tolerant extreme temperature sensing. Wavelength peak-to-peak (or null-to-null) collective spectrum spread measurement to detect wavelength peak/null shift measurement forms a coarse-fine temperature measurement using broadband spectrum monitoring. The SiC probe frontend acts as a stable emissivity Black-body radiator and monitoring the shift in radiation spectrum enables a pyrometer. This application combines all-SiC pyrometry with thick SiC etalon laser interferometry within a free-spectral range to form a coarse-fine temperature measurement sensor. RF notch filtering techniques improve the sensitivity of the temperature measurement where fine spectral shift or spectrum measurements are needed to deduce temperature.

Neonatal Stroke Causes Poor Midline Motor Behaviors and Poor Fine and Gross Motor Skills during Early Infancy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Chao-Ying; Lo, Warren D.; Heathcock, Jill C.

2013-01-01

Upper extremity movements, midline behaviors, fine, and gross motor skills are frequently impaired in hemiparesis and cerebral palsy. We investigated midline toy exploration and fine and gross motor skills in infants at risk for hemiplegic cerebral palsy. Eight infants with neonatal stroke (NS) and thirteen infants with typical development (TD)…

Microhabitats in the tropics buffer temperature in a globally coherent manner.

PubMed

Scheffers, Brett R; Evans, Theodore A; Williams, Stephen E; Edwards, David P

2014-12-01

Vegetated habitats contain a variety of fine-scale features that can ameliorate temperate extremes. These buffered microhabitats may be used by species to evade extreme weather and novel climates in the future. Yet, the magnitude and extent of this buffering on a global scale remains unknown. Across all tropical continents and using 36 published studies, we assessed temperature buffering from within microhabitats across various habitat strata and structures (e.g. soil, logs, epiphytes and tree holes) and compared them to non-buffered macro-scale ambient temperatures (the thermal control). Microhabitats buffered temperature by 3.9 °C and reduced maximum temperatures by 3.5 °C. Buffering was most pronounced in tropical lowlands where temperatures were most variable. With the expected increase in extreme weather events, microhabitats should provide species with a local layer of protection that is not captured by traditional climate assessments, which are typically derived from macro-scale temperatures (e.g. satellites). Our data illustrate the need for a next generation of predictive models that account for species' ability to move within microhabitats to exploit favourable buffered microclimates. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Source appointment of fine particle number and volume concentration during severe haze pollution in Beijing in January 2013.

PubMed

Liu, Zirui; Wang, Yuesi; Hu, Bo; Ji, Dongsheng; Zhang, Junke; Wu, Fangkun; Wan, Xin; Wang, Yonghong

2016-04-01

Extreme haze episodes repeatedly shrouded Beijing during the winter of 2012-2013, causing major environmental and health problems. To better understand these extreme events, particle number size distribution (PNSD) and particle chemical composition (PCC) data collected in an intensive winter campaign in an urban site of Beijing were used to investigate the sources of ambient fine particles. Positive matrix factorization (PMF) analysis resolved a total of eight factors: two traffic factors, combustion factors, secondary aerosol, two accumulation mode aerosol factors, road dust, and long-range transported (LRT) dust. Traffic emissions (54%) and combustion aerosol (27%) were found to be the most important sources for particle number concentration, whereas combustion aerosol (33%) and accumulation mode aerosol (37%) dominated particle volume concentrations. Chemical compositions and sources of fine particles changed dynamically in the haze episodes. An enhanced role of secondary inorganic species was observed in the formation of haze pollution. Regional transport played an important role for high particles, contribution of which was on average up to 24-49% during the haze episodes. Secondary aerosols from urban background presented the largest contributions (45%) for the rapid increase of fine particles in the severest haze episode. In addition, the invasion of LRT dust aerosols further elevated the fine particles during the extreme haze episode. Our results showed a clear impact of regional transport on the local air pollution, suggesting the importance of regional-scale emission control measures in the local air quality management of Beijing.

Reading, Mathematics and Fine Motor Skills at 5 Years of Age in US Children who were Extremely Premature at Birth.

PubMed

Lee, Miryoung; Pascoe, John M; McNicholas, Caroline I

2017-01-01

Objectives The prevalence of extreme prematurity at birth has increased, but little research has examined its impact on developmental outcomes in large representative samples within the United States. This study examined the association of extreme prematurity with kindergarteners' reading skills, mathematics skills and fine motor skills. Methods The early childhood longitudinal study-birth cohort, a representative sample of the US children born in 2001 was analyzed for this study. Early reading and mathematics skills and fine motor skills were compared among 200 extremely premature children (EPC) (gestational age <28 wks or birthweight <1000 g), 500 premature children (PC), and 4300 term children (TC) (≥37wks or ≥2500 g). Generalized linear regression analyses included sampling weights, children's age, race, sex, and general health status, and parental marital status and education among singleton children. Results At age 5 years, EPC were 2.6(95 % CI 1.7-3.8) times more likely to fail build a gate and were 3.1(95 % CI 1.6-5.8) times more likely to fail all four drawing tasks compared to TC (p values <0.001). Fine motor performance of PC (failed to build a gate, 1.3[95 % CI 1.0-1.7]; failed to draw all four shapes, 1.1[95 % CI 0.8-1.6]) was not significantly different from TC. Mean early reading scale score (36.8[SE:1.3]) of EPC was 4.0 points lower than TC (p value < 0.0001) while mean reading score (39.9[SE:1.4]) of PC was not significantly different from TC (40.8[SE:1.1]). Mean mathematics scale score were significantly lower for both EPC (35.5[SE:1.0], p value < 0.001) and PC (39.8[SE:0.8], p value = 0.023) compared to TC (41.0[SE:0.6]). Conclusions for Practice Extreme prematurity at birth was associated with cognitive and fine motor delays at age 5 years. This suggests that based on a nationally representative sample of infants, the biological risk of extreme prematurity persists after adjusting for other factors related to development.

Application of a predator-prey overlap metric to determine the impact of sub-grid scale feeding dynamics on ecosystem productivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greer, A. T.; Woodson, C. B.

2016-02-01

Because of the complexity and extremely large size of marine ecosystems, research attention has a strong focus on modelling the system through space and time to elucidate processes driving ecosystem state. One of the major weaknesses of current modelling approaches is the reliance on a particular grid cell size (usually 10's of km in the horizontal & water column mean) to capture the relevant processes, even though empirical research has shown that marine systems are highly structured on fine scales, and this structure can persist over relatively long time scales (days to weeks). Fine-scale features can have a strong influence on the predator-prey interactions driving trophic transfer. Here we apply a statistic, the AB ratio, used to quantify increased predator production due to predator-prey overlap on fine scales in a manner that is computationally feasible for larger scale models. We calculated the AB ratio for predator-prey distributions throughout the scientific literature, as well as for data obtained with a towed plankton imaging system, demonstrating that averaging across a typical model grid cell neglects the fine-scale predator-prey overlap that is an essential component of ecosystem productivity. Organisms from a range of trophic levels and oceanographic regions tended to overlap with their prey both in the horizontal and vertical dimensions. When predator swimming over a diel cycle was incorporated, the amount of production indicated by the AB ratio increased substantially. For the plankton image data, the AB ratio was higher with increasing sampling resolution, especially when prey were highly aggregated. We recommend that ecosystem models incorporate more fine-scale information both to more accurately capture trophic transfer processes and to capitalize on the increasing sampling resolution and data volume from empirical studies.

Remediation of negative side effects of an on-going response-cost system with chronic mental patients.

PubMed

Doty, D W; McInnis, T; Paul, G L

1974-01-01

Response-cost procedures within a token economy with extremely regressed residents excluded many residents from access to positive reinforcement. Procedures allowing residents to "purchase eligibility" to obtain backup reinforcers through contingent payment on standing fines, combined with proportional fine payoff schedules contingent upon time without new fines, increased payment on fines, reduced incidence of new fines, and increased utilization of backup reinforcers. These modifications removed adverse side effects while retaining the benefits associated with response costs. Failures or adverse effects of elements of token systems should not occasion abandonment of token economies, but rather encourage their continual evaluation and modification.

Abrupt Changes in Bottom Water Benthic Foraminiferal Assemblages during Heinrich Events 1-4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lazar, K.; Rashid, H.; Vermooten, M.; Mingqiu, D.

2017-12-01

The extent to which Heinrich iceberg-rafting events modify bottom water ecology resulting in changes in benthic foraminifera is poorly known. Here, we report centennial to millennial scale changes in the benthic foraminiferal assemblages from sediment core Pa96018-06 (47.75oN; 46.21oW). It was collected on the northern slope of the Flemish Pass of southern Labrador Sea and is bathed by Labrador Sea Water, one of the major components of the meridional overturning circulation of the Atlantic. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages were determined and numerous species identified. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) on the bulk sediments and iceberg-rafted detritus (IRD) in addition to oxygen isotopes on polar planktonic foraminiferal Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (sinistral) were used to identify the detrital carbonate-rich Heinrich iceberg-rafting events 1 to 4. Changes in the total numbers of Elphidium excavatum subsp. clavatum typically mirror changes in the total benthic population, yet the percentage of E. e. clavatum as part of the total sample increases through time. E. e. clavatum comprises approximately 60% of the benthic assemblage in H4, and steadily increases to 80% of the assemblage in H1 and H2. Total benthic foraminiferal numbers increase at the onset of each Heinrich event, with the two largest peaks in the entire record characterizing H2 and H3. In addition, the fine-scale feature in H1 suggests an initial decrease in the % E. e. clavatum (and total benthics) which then increased to 85% of the assemblage during the latter part of H1. Our data suggest that harsh living conditions prevailed during the initial phases of Heinrich events when the availability of meltwater and the deposition of fine-grained carbonate sediments were dominant. However, it appears that the ecology was favorable for E. e. clavatum during the latter phase of Heinrich events when the deposition of fine-grained sediments dissipated and the supply of meltwater was limited. These latter stages, especially of H2 and H3, suggest a unique and extreme environment in which E. e. clavatum flourished while many other foraminifers were unable to recover. Typical of extreme cold-water, low-salinity environments, E. e. clavatum is likely a useful benthic foraminifer for tracking extreme iceberg-rafting events as preserved in the sedimentary record.

An Overview of SBIR Phase 2 Materials Structures for Extreme Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nguyen, Hung D.; Steele, Gynelle C.

2015-01-01

Technological innovation is the overall focus of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The program invests in the development of innovative concepts and technologies to help NASA's mission directorates address critical research and development needs for agency projects. This report highlights innovative SBIR Phase II projects from 2007-2012 specifically addressing Areas in Materials and Structures for Extreme Environments which is one of six core competencies at NASA Glenn Research Center. There are twenty three technologies featured with emphasis on a wide spectrum of applications such as fine-filament superconductor wire, composite oxide cathode materials, nano-composites, high radiation solar cell, wrapped multilayer insulation, thin aerogel, and much more. Each article in this booklet describes an innovation, technical objective, and highlights NASA commercial and industrial applications. This report serves as an opportunity for NASA personnel including engineers, researchers, and program managers to learn of NASA SBIR's capabilities that might be crosscutting into this technology area. As the result, it would cause collaborations and partnerships between the small companies and NASA Programs and Projects resulting in benefit to both SBIR companies and NASA.

Radiative Characteristics of Aerosol During Extreme Fire Event over Siberia in Summer 2012

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhuravleva, Tatiana B.; Kabanov, Dmitriy M.; Nasrtdinov, Ilmir M.; Russkova, Tatiana V.; Sakerin, Sergey M.; Smirnov, Alexander; Holben, Brent N.

2017-01-01

Microphysical and optical properties of aerosol were studied during a mega-fire event in summer 2012 over Siberia using ground-based measurements of spectral solarradiation at the AERONET site in Tomsk and satellite observations. The data were analyzed using multi-year (2003-2013) measurements of aerosol characteristics under back-ground conditions and for less intense fires, differing in burning biomass type, stage of fire, remoteness from observation site, etc. (ordinary smoke). In June-August 2012, the average aerosol optical depth (AOD, 500 nm) had been 0.95+/-0.86, about a factor of 6 larger than background values (0.16+/-0.08), and a factor of 2.5 larger than in ordinary smoke. The AOD values were extremely high on 24-28 July and reached 3-5. A comparison with satellite observations showed that ground-based measurements in the region of Tomsk not only reflect the local AOD features, but are also characteristic for the territory of Western Siberia as a whole. Single scattering albedo (SSA, 440 nm) in this period ranged from 0.91 to 0.99 with an average of approx. 0.96 in the entire wavelength range of 440-1020 nm. The increase in absorptance of aerosol particles (SSA(440 nm)=0.92) and decrease in SSA with wavelength observed in ordinary smoke agree with the data from multi-year observations in analogous situations in the boreal zone of USA and Canada. Volume aerosol size distribution in extreme and ordinary smoke had a bimodal character with significant prevalence of fine-mode particles, but in summer 2012 the mean median radius and the width of the fine-mode distribution somewhat increased. In contrast to data from multi-year observations, in summer 2012 an increase in the volume concentration and median radius of the coarse mode was observed with growing AOD.

Molecular Eigensolution Symmetry Analysis and Fine Structure

PubMed Central

Harter, William G.; Mitchell, Justin C.

2013-01-01

Spectra of high-symmetry molecules contain fine and superfine level cluster structure related to J-tunneling between hills and valleys on rovibronic energy surfaces (RES). Such graphic visualizations help disentangle multi-level dynamics, selection rules, and state mixing effects including widespread violation of nuclear spin symmetry species. A review of RES analysis compares it to that of potential energy surfaces (PES) used in Born–Oppenheimer approximations. Both take advantage of adiabatic coupling in order to visualize Hamiltonian eigensolutions. RES of symmetric and D2 asymmetric top rank-2-tensor Hamiltonians are compared with Oh spherical top rank-4-tensor fine-structure clusters of 6-fold and 8-fold tunneling multiplets. Then extreme 12-fold and 24-fold multiplets are analyzed by RES plots of higher rank tensor Hamiltonians. Such extreme clustering is rare in fundamental bands but prevalent in hot bands, and analysis of its superfine structure requires more efficient labeling and a more powerful group theory. This is introduced using elementary examples involving two groups of order-6 (C6 and D3~C3v), then applied to families of Oh clusters in SF6 spectra and to extreme clusters. PMID:23344041

Description of extreme-wave deposits on the northern coast of Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles

USGS Publications Warehouse

Watt, Steven G.; Jaffe, Bruce E.; Morton, Robert A.; Richmond, Bruce M.; Gelfencaum, Guy

2010-01-01

To develop a better understanding of the origins of extreme-wave deposits and to help assess the potential risk of future overwash events, a field mapping survey was conducted in November 2006 on the northern coast of Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. Deposits were mapped and analyzed to help develop a systematic sedimentological approach to distinguish the type of extreme-wave event (tsunamis or storms) or combination of events that formed and modified the deposits over time. Extreme-wave deposits on the northern coast of Bonaire between Boka Onima and Boka Olivia have formed sand sheets, poly-modal ridge complexes, and boulder fields on a Pleistocene limestone platform 3?8 meters above sea level. The deposits exhibit characteristics that are consistent with both large storm and tsunami processes that often overlap one another. Sand sheets occur as low-relief features underlying and incorporated with boulder field deposits. The seaward edge of ridge complexes are deposited up to 70 m from the shoreline and can extend over 200 m inland. Over 600 clasts were measured in fields and range in size from coarse gravel to fine block, weigh up to 165 metric tons, and are placed over 280 m from the shoreline. Our analyses indicate that the deposits may have been produced by a combination of hurricane and tsunami events spanning 10s to 1000s of years. Comparing the different deposit morphologies between study sites highlights the importance of shoreline orientation to the distribution of extreme-wave deposits onshore. However, further investigation is required to fully understand the processes that have produced and modified these deposits over time.

Multiresolution Iterative Reconstruction in High-Resolution Extremity Cone-Beam CT

PubMed Central

Cao, Qian; Zbijewski, Wojciech; Sisniega, Alejandro; Yorkston, John; Siewerdsen, Jeffrey H; Stayman, J Webster

2016-01-01

Application of model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) to high resolution cone-beam CT (CBCT) is computationally challenging because of the very fine discretization (voxel size <100 µm) of the reconstructed volume. Moreover, standard MBIR techniques require that the complete transaxial support for the acquired projections is reconstructed, thus precluding acceleration by restricting the reconstruction to a region-of-interest. To reduce the computational burden of high resolution MBIR, we propose a multiresolution Penalized-Weighted Least Squares (PWLS) algorithm, where the volume is parameterized as a union of fine and coarse voxel grids as well as selective binning of detector pixels. We introduce a penalty function designed to regularize across the boundaries between the two grids. The algorithm was evaluated in simulation studies emulating an extremity CBCT system and in a physical study on a test-bench. Artifacts arising from the mismatched discretization of the fine and coarse sub-volumes were investigated. The fine grid region was parameterized using 0.15 mm voxels and the voxel size in the coarse grid region was varied by changing a downsampling factor. No significant artifacts were found in either of the regions for downsampling factors of up to 4×. For a typical extremities CBCT volume size, this downsampling corresponds to an acceleration of the reconstruction that is more than five times faster than a brute force solution that applies fine voxel parameterization to the entire volume. For certain configurations of the coarse and fine grid regions, in particular when the boundary between the regions does not cross high attenuation gradients, downsampling factors as high as 10× can be used without introducing artifacts, yielding a ~50× speedup in PWLS. The proposed multiresolution algorithm significantly reduces the computational burden of high resolution iterative CBCT reconstruction and can be extended to other applications of MBIR where computationally expensive, high-fidelity forward models are applied only to a sub-region of the field-of-view. PMID:27694701

Laser-induced patterns on metals and polymers for biomimetic surface engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kietzig, Anne-Marie; Lehr, Jorge; Matus, Luke; Liang, Fang

2014-03-01

One common feature of many functional surfaces found in nature is their modular composition often exhibiting several length scales. Prominent natural examples for extreme behaviors can be named in various plant leaf (rose, peanut, lotus) or animal toe surfaces (Gecko, tree frog). Influence factors of interest are the surface's chemical composition, its microstructure, its organized or random roughness and hence the resulting surface wetting and adhesion character. Femtosecond (fs) laser micromachining offers a possibility to render all these factors in one single processing step on metallic and polymeric surfaces. Exemplarily, studies on Titanium and PTFE are shown, where the dependence of the resulting feature sizes on lasing intensity is investigated. While Ti surfaces show rigid surface patterns of micrometer scaled features with superimposed nanostructures, PTFE exhibits elastic hairy structures of nanometric diameter, which upon a certain threshold tend to bundle to larger features. Both surface patterns can be adjusted to mimic specific wetting and flow behaviour as seen on natural examples. Therefore, fs-laser micromachining is suggested as an interesting industrially scalable technique to pattern and fine-tune the surface wettability of a surface to the desired extends in one process step. Possible applications can be seen with surfaces, which require specific wetting, fouling, icing, friction or cell adhesion behaviour.

Fine-Granularity Functional Interaction Signatures for Characterization of Brain Conditions

PubMed Central

Hu, Xintao; Zhu, Dajiang; Lv, Peili; Li, Kaiming; Han, Junwei; Wang, Lihong; Shen, Dinggang; Guo, Lei; Liu, Tianming

2014-01-01

In the human brain, functional activity occurs at multiple spatial scales. Current studies on functional brain networks and their alterations in brain diseases via resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) are generally either at local scale (regionally confined analysis and inter-regional functional connectivity analysis) or at global scale (graph theoretic analysis). In contrast, inferring functional interaction at fine-granularity sub-network scale has not been adequately explored yet. Here our hypothesis is that functional interaction measured at fine-granularity subnetwork scale can provide new insight into the neural mechanisms of neurological and psychological conditions, thus offering complementary information for healthy and diseased population classification. In this paper, we derived fine-granularity functional interaction (FGFI) signatures in subjects with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Schizophrenia by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and rsfMRI, and used patient-control classification experiments to evaluate the distinctiveness of the derived FGFI features. Our experimental results have shown that the FGFI features alone can achieve comparable classification performance compared with the commonly used inter-regional connectivity features. However, the classification performance can be substantially improved when FGFI features and inter-regional connectivity features are integrated, suggesting the complementary information achieved from the FGFI signatures. PMID:23319242

Legacy effects of land-use modulate tree growth responses to climate extremes.

PubMed

Mausolf, Katharina; Härdtle, Werner; Jansen, Kirstin; Delory, Benjamin M; Hertel, Dietrich; Leuschner, Christoph; Temperton, Vicky M; von Oheimb, Goddert; Fichtner, Andreas

2018-05-10

Climate change can impact forest ecosystem processes via individual tree and community responses. While the importance of land-use legacies in modulating these processes have been increasingly recognised, evidence of former land-use mediated climate-growth relationships remain rare. We analysed how differences in former land-use (i.e. forest continuity) affect the growth response of European beech to climate extremes. Here, using dendrochronological and fine root data, we show that ancient forests (forests with a long forest continuity) and recent forests (forests afforested on former farmland) clearly differ with regard to climate-growth relationships. We found that sensitivity to climatic extremes was lower for trees growing in ancient forests, as reflected by significantly lower growth reductions during adverse climatic conditions. Fine root morphology also differed significantly between the former land-use types: on average, trees with high specific root length (SRL) and specific root area (SRA) and low root tissue density (RTD) were associated with recent forests, whereas the opposite traits were characteristic of ancient forests. Moreover, we found that trees of ancient forests hold a larger fine root system than trees of recent forests. Our results demonstrate that land-use legacy-mediated modifications in the size and morphology of the fine root system act as a mechanism in regulating drought resistance of beech, emphasising the need to consider the 'ecological memory' of forests when assessing or predicting the sensitivity of forest ecosystems to global environmental change.

Survey of Current Practice in the Fitting and Fine-Tuning of Common Signal-Processing Features in Hearing Aids for Adults.

PubMed

Anderson, Melinda C; Arehart, Kathryn H; Souza, Pamela E

2018-02-01

Current guidelines for adult hearing aid fittings recommend the use of a prescriptive fitting rationale with real-ear verification that considers the audiogram for the determination of frequency-specific gain and ratios for wide dynamic range compression. However, the guidelines lack recommendations for how other common signal-processing features (e.g., noise reduction, frequency lowering, directional microphones) should be considered during the provision of hearing aid fittings and fine-tunings for adult patients. The purpose of this survey was to identify how audiologists make clinical decisions regarding common signal-processing features for hearing aid provision in adults. An online survey was sent to audiologists across the United States. The 22 survey questions addressed four primary topics including demographics of the responding audiologists, factors affecting selection of hearing aid devices, the approaches used in the fitting of signal-processing features, and the strategies used in the fine-tuning of these features. A total of 251 audiologists who provide hearing aid fittings to adults completed the electronically distributed survey. The respondents worked in a variety of settings including private practice, physician offices, university clinics, and hospitals/medical centers. Data analysis was based on a qualitative analysis of the question responses. The survey results for each of the four topic areas (demographics, device selection, hearing aid fitting, and hearing aid fine-tuning) are summarized descriptively. Survey responses indicate that audiologists vary in the procedures they use in fitting and fine-tuning based on the specific feature, such that the approaches used for the fitting of frequency-specific gain differ from other types of features (i.e., compression time constants, frequency lowering parameters, noise reduction strength, directional microphones, feedback management). Audiologists commonly rely on prescriptive fitting formulas and probe microphone measures for the fitting of frequency-specific gain and rely on manufacturers' default settings and recommendations for both the initial fitting and the fine-tuning of signal-processing features other than frequency-specific gain. The survey results are consistent with a lack of published protocols and guidelines for fitting and adjusting signal-processing features beyond frequency-specific gain. To streamline current practice, a transparent evidence-based tool that enables clinicians to prescribe the setting of other features from individual patient characteristics would be desirable. American Academy of Audiology

MBR-SIFT: A mirror reflected invariant feature descriptor using a binary representation for image matching.

PubMed

Su, Mingzhe; Ma, Yan; Zhang, Xiangfen; Wang, Yan; Zhang, Yuping

2017-01-01

The traditional scale invariant feature transform (SIFT) method can extract distinctive features for image matching. However, it is extremely time-consuming in SIFT matching because of the use of the Euclidean distance measure. Recently, many binary SIFT (BSIFT) methods have been developed to improve matching efficiency; however, none of them is invariant to mirror reflection. To address these problems, in this paper, we present a horizontal or vertical mirror reflection invariant binary descriptor named MBR-SIFT, in addition to a novel image matching approach. First, 16 cells in the local region around the SIFT keypoint are reorganized, and then the 128-dimensional vector of the SIFT descriptor is transformed into a reconstructed vector according to eight directions. Finally, the MBR-SIFT descriptor is obtained after binarization and reverse coding. To improve the matching speed and accuracy, a fast matching algorithm that includes a coarse-to-fine two-step matching strategy in addition to two similarity measures for the MBR-SIFT descriptor are proposed. Experimental results on the UKBench dataset show that the proposed method not only solves the problem of mirror reflection, but also ensures desirable matching accuracy and speed.

MBR-SIFT: A mirror reflected invariant feature descriptor using a binary representation for image matching

PubMed Central

Su, Mingzhe; Ma, Yan; Zhang, Xiangfen; Wang, Yan; Zhang, Yuping

2017-01-01

The traditional scale invariant feature transform (SIFT) method can extract distinctive features for image matching. However, it is extremely time-consuming in SIFT matching because of the use of the Euclidean distance measure. Recently, many binary SIFT (BSIFT) methods have been developed to improve matching efficiency; however, none of them is invariant to mirror reflection. To address these problems, in this paper, we present a horizontal or vertical mirror reflection invariant binary descriptor named MBR-SIFT, in addition to a novel image matching approach. First, 16 cells in the local region around the SIFT keypoint are reorganized, and then the 128-dimensional vector of the SIFT descriptor is transformed into a reconstructed vector according to eight directions. Finally, the MBR-SIFT descriptor is obtained after binarization and reverse coding. To improve the matching speed and accuracy, a fast matching algorithm that includes a coarse-to-fine two-step matching strategy in addition to two similarity measures for the MBR-SIFT descriptor are proposed. Experimental results on the UKBench dataset show that the proposed method not only solves the problem of mirror reflection, but also ensures desirable matching accuracy and speed. PMID:28542537

Photon-efficient super-resolution laser radar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shin, Dongeek; Shapiro, Jeffrey H.; Goyal, Vivek K.

2017-08-01

The resolution achieved in photon-efficient active optical range imaging systems can be low due to non-idealities such as propagation through a diffuse scattering medium. We propose a constrained optimization-based frame- work to address extremes in scarcity of photons and blurring by a forward imaging kernel. We provide two algorithms for the resulting inverse problem: a greedy algorithm, inspired by sparse pursuit algorithms; and a convex optimization heuristic that incorporates image total variation regularization. We demonstrate that our framework outperforms existing deconvolution imaging techniques in terms of peak signal-to-noise ratio. Since our proposed method is able to super-resolve depth features using small numbers of photon counts, it can be useful for observing fine-scale phenomena in remote sensing through a scattering medium and through-the-skin biomedical imaging applications.

[Coal fineness effect on primary particulate matter features during pulverized coal combustion].

PubMed

Lü, Jian-yi; Li, Ding-kai

2007-09-01

Three kinds of coal differed from fineness were burned in a laboratory-scale drop tube furnace for combustion test, and an 8-stage Andersen particle impactor was employed for sampling the primary particulate matter (PM), in order to study coal fineness effect on primary PM features during pulverized coal combustion. It has been shown that the finer the coal was, the finer the PM produced. PM, emission amount augmented with coal fineness decreased, and the amount of PM10 increased from 13 mg/g to 21 mg/g respectively generated by coarse coal and fine coal. The amount of PM2.5 increased from 2 mg/g to 8 mg/g at the same condition. Constituents and content in bulk ash varied little after three different fineness coal combustion, while the appearance of grading PM differed visibly. The value of R(EE) increased while the coal fineness deceased. The volatility of trace elements which were investigated was Pb > Cr > Zn > Cu > Ni in turn. The concentration of poisonous trace elements was higher which generated from fine coal combustion. The volatilization capacity was influenced little by coal fineness, but the volatilization extent was influenced differently by coal fineness. Fine coal combustion affects worse environment than coarse coal does.

Development and Validation of an Aquatic Fine Sediment Biotic Index

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Relyea, Christina D.; Minshall, G. Wayne; Danehy, Robert J.

2012-01-01

The Fine Sediment Biotic Index (FSBI) is a regional, stressor-specific biomonitoring index to assess fine sediment (<2 mm) impacts on macroinvertebrate communities in northwestern US streams. We examined previously collected data of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages and substrate particle sizes for 1,139 streams spanning 16 western US Level III Ecoregions to determine macroinvertebrate sensitivity (mostly at species level) to fine sediment. We developed FSBI for four ecoregion groupings that include nine of the ecoregions. The grouping were: the Coast (Coast Range ecoregion) (136 streams), Northern Mountains (Cascades, N. Rockies, ID Batholith ecoregions) (428 streams), Rockies (Middle Rockies, Southern Rockies ecoregions) (199 streams), and Basin and Plains (Columbia Plateau, Snake River Basin, Northern Basin and Range ecoregions) (262 streams). We excluded rare taxa and taxa identified at coarse taxonomic levels, including Chironomidae. This reduced the 685 taxa from all data sets to 206. Of these 93 exhibited some sensitivity to fine sediment which we classified into four categories: extremely, very, moderately, and slightly sensitive; containing 11, 22, 30, and 30 taxa, respectively. Categories were weighted and a FSBI score calculated by summing the sensitive taxa found in a stream. There were no orders or families that were solely sensitive or resistant to fine sediment. Although, among the three orders commonly regarded as indicators of high water quality, the Plecoptera (5), Trichoptera (3), and Ephemeroptera (2) contained all but one of the species or species groups classified as extremely sensitive. Index validation with an independent data set of 255 streams found FSBI scores to accurately predict both high and low levels of measured fine sediment.

Uprated fine guidance sensor study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

Future orbital observatories will require star trackers of extremely high precision. These sensors must maintain high pointing accuracy and pointing stability simultaneously with a low light level signal from a guide star. To establish the fine guidance sensing requirements and to evaluate candidate fine guidance sensing concepts, the Space Telescope Optical Telescope Assembly was used as the reference optical system. The requirements review was separated into three areas: Optical Telescope Assembly (OTA), Fine Guidance Sensing and astrometry. The results show that the detectors should be installed directly onto the focal surface presented by the optics. This would maximize throughput and minimize point stability error by not incoporating any additional optical elements.

Impact of selective posterior rhizotomy on fine motor skills. Long-term results using a validated evaluative measure.

PubMed

Mittal, Sandeep; Farmer, Jean-Pierre; Al-Atassi, Borhan; Montpetit, Kathleen; Gervais, Nathalie; Poulin, Chantal; Cantin, Marie-André; Benaroch, Thierry E

2002-03-01

Suprasegmental effects following selective posterior rhizotomy have been frequently reported. However, few studies have used validated functional outcome measures to report the surgical results beyond 3 years. The authors analyzed data obtained from the McGill Rhizotomy Database to determine the long-term impact of lumbosacral dorsal rhizotomy on fine motor skills. The study population comprised children with debilitating spasticity who underwent SPR and were evaluated by a multidisciplinary team preoperatively, at 6 months and 1 year postoperatively. Quantitative standardized assessments of upper extremity function were obtained using the fine motor skills section of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS) test. Of 70 patients who met the entry criteria for the study, 45 and 25 completed the 3- and 5-year assessments, respectively. Statistical analysis demonstrated significant improvements in grasping, hand use, eye-hand coordination, and manual dexterity at 1 year after SPR. More importantly, all improvements were maintained at 3 and 5 years following SPR. This study supports that significant improvements in upper extremity fine motor function using the PDMS evaluative measure are present after SPR and that these suprasegmental benefits are durable. Copyright 2002 S. Karger AG, Basel

Detection of fibrils associated with Rickettsia rickettsii.

PubMed

Todd, W J; Burgdorfer, W; Wray, G P

1983-09-01

The ultrastructural appearance of the "halozone" formed at the interface between the spotted fever agent Rickettsia rickettsii and the cytoplasm of persistently infected cultured vole cells (Microtus pennsylvanicus) was studied by transmission electron microscopy. In sections of epoxy-embedded specimens stained with uranyl acetate and lead citrate, the halozone appeared clear and devoid of ultrastructural features. However, when unembedded preparations of whole infected cells were examined at 1,000 kV, fine structural features were observed within the halozone. These features, associated with the rickettsial outer membrane, were more clearly detectable when the infected cells were extracted with the detergent Triton X-100 before fixation. Under such conditions, long extensions of the rickettsial outer membrane, microfilament-like structures attached to that membrane, and extensive attachments between adjacent rickettsiae were seen. The fine structural features within the rickettsial halozone were also seen at 75 kV when unembedded sections were prepared from polyethylene glycol-embedded specimens. Thus, epoxy-embedding medium obscures the fine structural features within the halozone surrounding the rickettsiae in infected cells.

Detection of fibrils associated with Rickettsia rickettsii.

PubMed Central

Todd, W J; Burgdorfer, W; Wray, G P

1983-01-01

The ultrastructural appearance of the "halozone" formed at the interface between the spotted fever agent Rickettsia rickettsii and the cytoplasm of persistently infected cultured vole cells (Microtus pennsylvanicus) was studied by transmission electron microscopy. In sections of epoxy-embedded specimens stained with uranyl acetate and lead citrate, the halozone appeared clear and devoid of ultrastructural features. However, when unembedded preparations of whole infected cells were examined at 1,000 kV, fine structural features were observed within the halozone. These features, associated with the rickettsial outer membrane, were more clearly detectable when the infected cells were extracted with the detergent Triton X-100 before fixation. Under such conditions, long extensions of the rickettsial outer membrane, microfilament-like structures attached to that membrane, and extensive attachments between adjacent rickettsiae were seen. The fine structural features within the rickettsial halozone were also seen at 75 kV when unembedded sections were prepared from polyethylene glycol-embedded specimens. Thus, epoxy-embedding medium obscures the fine structural features within the halozone surrounding the rickettsiae in infected cells. Images PMID:6411620

Fine-tuning convolutional deep features for MRI based brain tumor classification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmed, Kaoutar B.; Hall, Lawrence O.; Goldgof, Dmitry B.; Liu, Renhao; Gatenby, Robert A.

2017-03-01

Prediction of survival time from brain tumor magnetic resonance images (MRI) is not commonly performed and would ordinarily be a time consuming process. However, current cross-sectional imaging techniques, particularly MRI, can be used to generate many features that may provide information on the patient's prognosis, including survival. This information can potentially be used to identify individuals who would benefit from more aggressive therapy. Rather than using pre-defined and hand-engineered features as with current radiomics methods, we investigated the use of deep features extracted from pre-trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in predicting survival time. We also provide evidence for the power of domain specific fine-tuning in improving the performance of a pre-trained CNN's, even though our data set is small. We fine-tuned a CNN initially trained on a large natural image recognition dataset (Imagenet ILSVRC) and transferred the learned feature representations to the survival time prediction task, obtaining over 81% accuracy in a leave one out cross validation.

Acoustic fine structure may encode biologically relevant information for zebra finches.

PubMed

Prior, Nora H; Smith, Edward; Lawson, Shelby; Ball, Gregory F; Dooling, Robert J

2018-04-18

The ability to discriminate changes in the fine structure of complex sounds is well developed in birds. However, the precise limit of this discrimination ability and how it is used in the context of natural communication remains unclear. Here we describe natural variability in acoustic fine structure of male and female zebra finch calls. Results from psychoacoustic experiments demonstrate that zebra finches are able to discriminate extremely small differences in fine structure, which are on the order of the variation in acoustic fine structure that is present in their vocal signals. Results from signal analysis methods also suggest that acoustic fine structure may carry information that distinguishes between biologically relevant categories including sex, call type and individual identity. Combined, our results are consistent with the hypothesis that zebra finches can encode biologically relevant information within the fine structure of their calls. This study provides a foundation for our understanding of how acoustic fine structure may be involved in animal communication.

Dissimilar Impact Welding of 6111-T4, 5052-H32 Aluminum Alloys to 22MnB5, DP980 Steels and the Structure-Property Relationship of a Strongly Bonded Interface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Bert; Vivek, Anupam; Presley, Michael; Daehn, Glenn S.

2018-03-01

The ability to weld high-strength aluminum to high-strength steel is highly desired for vehicle lightweighting but difficult to attain by conventional means. In this work, vaporizing foil actuator welding was used to successfully weld four Al/Fe combinations consisting of high-strength alloys: AA5052-H32, AA6111-T4, DP980, and 22MnB5. Flyer velocities up to 727 m/s were reached using 10 kJ input energy. In lap-shear testing, samples primarily failed in base aluminum near the aluminum's native strength, showing that the welds were stronger than a base metal and that the base metal was not significantly weakened by the welding process. A particularly strong weld area was studied by transmission electron microscopy to shed light on the microstructural features of strong impact welds. It was found to be characterized by a continuously bonded, fully crystalline interface, extremely fine (nanoscale) grains, mesoscopic as well as microscopic wavy features, and lack of large continuous intermetallic compounds.

A Magnetoresistive Tactile Sensor for Harsh Environment Applications

PubMed Central

Alfadhel, Ahmed; Khan, Mohammed Asadullah; Cardoso, Susana; Leitao, Diana; Kosel, Jürgen

2016-01-01

A magnetoresistive tactile sensor is reported, which is capable of working in high temperatures up to 140 °C. Hair-like bioinspired structures, known as cilia, made out of permanent magnetic nanocomposite material on top of spin-valve giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensors are used for tactile sensing at high temperatures. The magnetic nanocomposite, consisting of iron nanowires incorporated into the polymer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), is very flexible, biocompatible, has high remanence, and is also resilient to antagonistic sensing ambient. When the cilia come in contact with a surface, they deflect in compliance with the surface topology. This yields a change of the GMR sensor signal, enabling the detection of extremely fine features. The spin-valve is covered with a passivation layer, which enables adequate performance in spite of harsh environmental conditions, as demonstrated in this paper for high temperature. PMID:27164113

Ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration versus core needle biopsy: comparison of post-biopsy hematoma rates and risk factors.

PubMed

Chae, In Hye; Kim, Eun-Kyung; Moon, Hee Jung; Yoon, Jung Hyun; Park, Vivian Y; Kwak, Jin Young

2017-07-01

To compare post-biopsy hematoma rates between ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration and ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy, and to investigate risk factors for post-biopsy hematoma. A total of 5304 thyroid nodules which underwent ultrasound guided biopsy were included in this retrospective study. We compared clinical and US features between patients with and without post-biopsy hematoma. Associations between these features and post-biopsy hematoma were analyzed. Post-biopsy hematoma rate was 0.8% (43/5121) for ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration and 4.9% (9/183) for ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy (P < 0.001). For ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration, gender, age, size, presence of vascularity, and suspicious US features were not associated with post-biopsy hematoma according to experience level. Post-biopsy hematoma occurred significantly more with ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy (9/179, 5.0%) than with ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration (9/1138, 0.8%) (P < 0.001) in experienced performers and ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy was the only significant risk factor for post-biopsy hematoma (adjusted Odds Ratio, 6.458, P < 0.001). Post-biopsy hematoma occurred significantly more in ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy than in ultrasound guided-fine needle aspiration and ultrasound guided-core needle biopsy was the only independent factor of post-biopsy hematoma in thyroid nodules.

Neonatal stroke causes poor midline motor behaviors and poor fine and gross motor skills during early infancy.

PubMed

Chen, Chao-Ying; Lo, Warren D; Heathcock, Jill C

2013-03-01

Upper extremity movements, midline behaviors, fine, and gross motor skills are frequently impaired in hemiparesis and cerebral palsy. We investigated midline toy exploration and fine and gross motor skills in infants at risk for hemiplegic cerebral palsy. Eight infants with neonatal stroke (NS) and thirteen infants with typical development (TD) were assessed from 2 to 7 months of age. The following variables were analyzed: percentage of time in midline and fine and gross motor scores on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID-III). Infants with neonatal stroke demonstrated poor performance in midline behaviors and fine and gross motor scores on the BSID-III. These results suggest that infants with NS have poor midline behaviors and motor skill development early in infancy. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Brief Assessment of Motor Function: Content Validity and Reliability of the Upper Extremity Gross Motor Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cintas, Holly Lea; Parks, Rebecca; Don, Sarah; Gerber, Lynn

2011-01-01

Content validity and reliability of the Brief Assessment of Motor Function (BAMF) Upper Extremity Gross Motor Scale (UEGMS) were evaluated in this prospective, descriptive study. The UEGMS is one of five BAMF ordinal scales designed for quick documentation of gross, fine, and oral motor skill levels. Designed to be independent of age and…

A comparative study of new and current methods for dental micro-CT image denoising

PubMed Central

Lashgari, Mojtaba; Qin, Jie; Swain, Michael

2016-01-01

Objectives: The aim of the current study was to evaluate the application of two advanced noise-reduction algorithms for dental micro-CT images and to implement a comparative analysis of the performance of new and current denoising algorithms. Methods: Denoising was performed using gaussian and median filters as the current filtering approaches and the block-matching and three-dimensional (BM3D) method and total variation method as the proposed new filtering techniques. The performance of the denoising methods was evaluated quantitatively using contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), edge preserving index (EPI) and blurring indexes, as well as qualitatively using the double-stimulus continuous quality scale procedure. Results: The BM3D method had the best performance with regard to preservation of fine textural features (CNREdge), non-blurring of the whole image (blurring index), the clinical visual score in images with very fine features and the overall visual score for all types of images. On the other hand, the total variation method provided the best results with regard to smoothing of images in texture-free areas (CNRTex-free) and in preserving the edges and borders of image features (EPI). Conclusions: The BM3D method is the most reliable technique for denoising dental micro-CT images with very fine textural details, such as shallow enamel lesions, in which the preservation of the texture and fine features is of the greatest importance. On the other hand, the total variation method is the technique of choice for denoising images without very fine textural details in which the clinician or researcher is interested mainly in anatomical features and structural measurements. PMID:26764583

Object-Based Paddy Rice Mapping Using HJ-1A/B Data and Temporal Features Extracted from Time Series MODIS NDVI Data

PubMed Central

Singha, Mrinal; Wu, Bingfang; Zhang, Miao

2016-01-01

Accurate and timely mapping of paddy rice is vital for food security and environmental sustainability. This study evaluates the utility of temporal features extracted from coarse resolution data for object-based paddy rice classification of fine resolution data. The coarse resolution vegetation index data is first fused with the fine resolution data to generate the time series fine resolution data. Temporal features are extracted from the fused data and added with the multi-spectral data to improve the classification accuracy. Temporal features provided the crop growth information, while multi-spectral data provided the pattern variation of paddy rice. The achieved overall classification accuracy and kappa coefficient were 84.37% and 0.68, respectively. The results indicate that the use of temporal features improved the overall classification accuracy of a single-date multi-spectral image by 18.75% from 65.62% to 84.37%. The minimum sensitivity (MS) of the paddy rice classification has also been improved. The comparison showed that the mapped paddy area was analogous to the agricultural statistics at the district level. This work also highlighted the importance of feature selection to achieve higher classification accuracies. These results demonstrate the potential of the combined use of temporal and spectral features for accurate paddy rice classification. PMID:28025525

Object-Based Paddy Rice Mapping Using HJ-1A/B Data and Temporal Features Extracted from Time Series MODIS NDVI Data.

PubMed

Singha, Mrinal; Wu, Bingfang; Zhang, Miao

2016-12-22

Accurate and timely mapping of paddy rice is vital for food security and environmental sustainability. This study evaluates the utility of temporal features extracted from coarse resolution data for object-based paddy rice classification of fine resolution data. The coarse resolution vegetation index data is first fused with the fine resolution data to generate the time series fine resolution data. Temporal features are extracted from the fused data and added with the multi-spectral data to improve the classification accuracy. Temporal features provided the crop growth information, while multi-spectral data provided the pattern variation of paddy rice. The achieved overall classification accuracy and kappa coefficient were 84.37% and 0.68, respectively. The results indicate that the use of temporal features improved the overall classification accuracy of a single-date multi-spectral image by 18.75% from 65.62% to 84.37%. The minimum sensitivity (MS) of the paddy rice classification has also been improved. The comparison showed that the mapped paddy area was analogous to the agricultural statistics at the district level. This work also highlighted the importance of feature selection to achieve higher classification accuracies. These results demonstrate the potential of the combined use of temporal and spectral features for accurate paddy rice classification.

Nanocrystalline coating design for extreme applications based on the concept of complex adaptive behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fox-Rabinovich, G. S.; Veldhuis, S. C.; Dosbaeva, G. K.; Yamamoto, K.; Kovalev, A. I.; Wainstein, D. L.; Gershman, I. S.; Shuster, L. S.; Beake, B. D.

2008-04-01

The development of effective hard coatings for high performance dry machining, which is associated with high stress/temperatures during friction, is a major challenge. Newly developed synergistically alloyed nanocrystalline adaptive Ti0.2Al0.55Cr0.2Si0.03Y0.02N plasma vapor deposited hard coatings exhibit excellent tool life under conditions of high performance dry machining of hardened steel, especially under severe and extreme cutting conditions. The coating is capable of sustaining cutting speeds as high as 600 m/min. Comprehensive investigation of the microstructure and properties of the coating was performed. The structure of the coating before and after service has been characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. Micromechanical characteristics of the coating have been investigated at elevated temperatures. Oxidation resistance of the coating has been studied by using thermogravimetry within a temperature range of 25-1100 °C in air. The coefficient of friction of the coatings was studied within a temperature range of 25-1200 °C. To determine the causes of excellent tool life and improved wear behavior of the TiAlCrSiYN coatings, its surface structure characteristics after service have been investigated by using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and extended energy-loss fine spectroscopy. One of the major features of this coating is the dynamic formation of the protective tribo-oxide films (dissipative structures) on the surface during friction with a sapphire and mullite crystal structure. Aluminum- and silicon-rich tribofilms with dangling bonds form on the surface as well. These tribofilms act in synergy and protect the surface so efficiently that it is able to sustain extreme operating conditions. Moreover, the Ti0.2Al0.55Cr0.2Si0.03Y0.02N coating possesses some features of a complex adaptive behavior because it has a number of improved characteristics (tribological adaptability, ultrafine nanocrystalline structure, hot hardness and plasticity, and oxidation stability) that work synergistically as a whole. Due to the complex adaptive behavior, this coating represents a higher ordered system that has an ability to achieve unattainable wear resistance under strongly intensifying and extreme tribological conditions.

Thyroid Nodule Classification in Ultrasound Images by Fine-Tuning Deep Convolutional Neural Network.

PubMed

Chi, Jianning; Walia, Ekta; Babyn, Paul; Wang, Jimmy; Groot, Gary; Eramian, Mark

2017-08-01

With many thyroid nodules being incidentally detected, it is important to identify as many malignant nodules as possible while excluding those that are highly likely to be benign from fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsies or surgeries. This paper presents a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for classifying thyroid nodules in ultrasound images. We use deep learning approach to extract features from thyroid ultrasound images. Ultrasound images are pre-processed to calibrate their scale and remove the artifacts. A pre-trained GoogLeNet model is then fine-tuned using the pre-processed image samples which leads to superior feature extraction. The extracted features of the thyroid ultrasound images are sent to a Cost-sensitive Random Forest classifier to classify the images into "malignant" and "benign" cases. The experimental results show the proposed fine-tuned GoogLeNet model achieves excellent classification performance, attaining 98.29% classification accuracy, 99.10% sensitivity and 93.90% specificity for the images in an open access database (Pedraza et al. 16), while 96.34% classification accuracy, 86% sensitivity and 99% specificity for the images in our local health region database.

Grain boundary stability governs hardening and softening in extremely fine nanograined metals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, J.; Shi, Y. N.; Sauvage, X.; Sha, G.; Lu, K.

2017-03-01

Conventional metals become harder with decreasing grain sizes, following the classical Hall-Petch relationship. However, this relationship fails and softening occurs at some grain sizes in the nanometer regime for some alloys. In this study, we discovered that plastic deformation mechanism of extremely fine nanograined metals and their hardness are adjustable through tailoring grain boundary (GB) stability. The electrodeposited nanograined nickel-molybdenum (Ni-Mo) samples become softened for grain sizes below 10 nanometers because of GB-mediated processes. With GB stabilization through relaxation and Mo segregation, ultrahigh hardness is achieved in the nanograined samples with a plastic deformation mechanism dominated by generation of extended partial dislocations. Grain boundary stability provides an alternative dimension, in addition to grain size, for producing novel nanograined metals with extraordinary properties.

Visual–motor integration and fine motor skills at 6½ years of age and associations with neonatal brain volumes in children born extremely preterm in Sweden: a population-based cohort study

PubMed Central

Padilla, Nelly; Forsman, Lea; Broström, Lina; Hellgren, Kerstin; Åden, Ulrika

2018-01-01

Objectives This exploratory study aimed to investigate associations between neonatal brain volumes and visual–motor integration (VMI) and fine motor skills in children born extremely preterm (EPT) when they reached 6½ years of age. Setting Prospective population-based cohort study in Stockholm, Sweden, during 3 years. Participants All children born before gestational age, 27 weeks, during 2004–2007 in Stockholm, without major morbidities and impairments, and who underwent MRI at term-equivalent age. Main outcome measures Brain volumes were calculated using morphometric analyses in regions known to be involved in VMI and fine motor functions. VMI was assessed with The Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual–Motor Integration—sixth edition and fine motor skills were assessed with the manual dexterity subtest from the Movement Assessment Battery for Children—second edition, at 6½ years. Associations between the brain volumes and VMI and fine motor skills were evaluated using partial correlation, adjusted for total cerebral parenchyma and sex. Results Out of 107 children born at gestational age <27 weeks, 83 were assessed at 6½ years and 66/83 were without major brain lesions or cerebral palsy and included in the analyses. A representative subsample underwent morphometric analyses: automatic segmentation (n=34) and atlas-based segmentation (n=26). The precentral gyrus was associated with both VMI (r=0.54, P=0.007) and fine motor skills (r=0.54, P=0.01). Associations were also seen between fine motor skills and the volume of the cerebellum (r=0.42, P=0.02), brainstem (r=0.47, P=0.008) and grey matter (r=−0.38, P=0.04). Conclusions Neonatal brain volumes in areas known to be involved in VMI and fine motor skills were associated with scores for these two functions when children born EPT without major brain lesions or cerebral palsy were evaluated at 6½ years of age. Establishing clear associations between early brain volume alterations and later VMI and/or fine motor skills could make early interventions possible. PMID:29455171

Metastatic tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma masquerading as a pancreatic cystic tumor and diagnosed by EUS-guided FNA.

PubMed

Glass, Ryan; Andrawes, Sherif A; Hamele-Bena, Diane; Tong, Guo-Xia

2017-11-01

Metastatic carcinoma to the pancreas is uncommon and head and neck squamous carcinoma metastatic to the pancreas is extremely rare. Metastatic squamous cell carcinoma to the pancreas presents a unique diagnostic challenge: in addition to mimicking the rare primary squamous cell carcinoma of the pancreas based on cytologic, histologic, and immunohistochemical features, it may be mistaken for a cystic neoplasm of the pancreas because of its high predilection for cystic degeneration in metastatic sites. Herein, we report a case of tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma with a cystic pancreatic metastasis diagnosed by ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy (EUS-FNA). This represents a third reported case of metastatic squamous cell carcinoma to the pancreas from the head and neck region. Metastatic squamous cell carcinoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of EUS-FNA during evaluation of pancreatic cystic lesion. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Do we live in the best of all possible worlds? The fine-tuning of the constants of nature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naumann, Thomas

2017-12-01

Our existence depends on a variety of constants which appear to be extremely fine-tuned to allow for the existence of life. These include the number of spatial dimensions, the strengths of the forces, the masses of the particles, the composition of the Universe and others. On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the death of G.W. Leibniz we discuss the question of whether we live in the "Best of all Worlds". The hypothesis of a multiverse could explain the mysterious fine tuning of so many fundamental quantities. Anthropic arguments are critically reviewed.

Selective Convolutional Descriptor Aggregation for Fine-Grained Image Retrieval.

PubMed

Wei, Xiu-Shen; Luo, Jian-Hao; Wu, Jianxin; Zhou, Zhi-Hua

2017-06-01

Deep convolutional neural network models pre-trained for the ImageNet classification task have been successfully adopted to tasks in other domains, such as texture description and object proposal generation, but these tasks require annotations for images in the new domain. In this paper, we focus on a novel and challenging task in the pure unsupervised setting: fine-grained image retrieval. Even with image labels, fine-grained images are difficult to classify, letting alone the unsupervised retrieval task. We propose the selective convolutional descriptor aggregation (SCDA) method. The SCDA first localizes the main object in fine-grained images, a step that discards the noisy background and keeps useful deep descriptors. The selected descriptors are then aggregated and the dimensionality is reduced into a short feature vector using the best practices we found. The SCDA is unsupervised, using no image label or bounding box annotation. Experiments on six fine-grained data sets confirm the effectiveness of the SCDA for fine-grained image retrieval. Besides, visualization of the SCDA features shows that they correspond to visual attributes (even subtle ones), which might explain SCDA's high-mean average precision in fine-grained retrieval. Moreover, on general image retrieval data sets, the SCDA achieves comparable retrieval results with the state-of-the-art general image retrieval approaches.

Dark-field microscopic image stitching method for surface defects evaluation of large fine optics.

PubMed

Liu, Dong; Wang, Shitong; Cao, Pin; Li, Lu; Cheng, Zhongtao; Gao, Xin; Yang, Yongying

2013-03-11

One of the challenges in surface defects evaluation of large fine optics is to detect defects of microns on surfaces of tens or hundreds of millimeters. Sub-aperture scanning and stitching is considered to be a practical and efficient method. But since there are usually few defects on the large aperture fine optics, resulting in no defects or only one run-through line feature in many sub-aperture images, traditional stitching methods encounter with mismatch problem. In this paper, a feature-based multi-cycle image stitching algorithm is proposed to solve the problem. The overlapping areas of sub-apertures are categorized based on the features they contain. Different types of overlapping areas are then stitched in different cycles with different methods. The stitching trace is changed to follow the one that determined by the features. The whole stitching procedure is a region-growing like process. Sub-aperture blocks grow bigger after each cycle and finally the full aperture image is obtained. Comparison experiment shows that the proposed method is very suitable to stitch sub-apertures that very few feature information exists in the overlapping areas and can stitch the dark-field microscopic sub-aperture images very well.

Gross and fine motor function in fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

PubMed

Rasouli, Omid; Fors, Egil A; Borchgrevink, Petter Chr; Öhberg, Fredrik; Stensdotter, Ann-Katrin

2017-01-01

This paper aimed to investigate motor proficiency in fine and gross motor function, with a focus on reaction time (RT) and movement skill, in patients with fibromyalgia (FM) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) compared to healthy controls (HC). A total of 60 individuals (20 CFS, 20 FM, and 20 HC), age 19-49 years, participated in this study. Gross motor function in the lower extremity was assessed using a RT task during gait initiation in response to an auditory trigger. Fine motor function in the upper extremity was measured during a precision task (the Purdue Pegboard test) where the number of pins inserted within 30 s was counted. No significant differences were found between FM and CFS in any parameters. FM and CFS groups had significantly longer RT than HC in the gait initiation ( p =0.001, and p =0.004 respectively). In the Purdue Pegboard test, 20% in the FM group, 15% in the CFS groups, and 0% of HC group, scored below the threshold of the accepted performance. However, there were no significant differences between FM, CFS, and HC in this task ( p =0.12). Compared to controls, both CFS and FM groups displayed significantly longer RT in the gait initiation task. Generally, FM patients showed the worst results in both tests, although no group differences were found in fine motor control, according to the Purdue Pegboard test.

Neotectonic Activity from the Upper Reaches of the Arabian Gulf and Possibilities of New Oil Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sissakian, V. K.; Abdul Ahad, A. D.; Al-Ansari, N.; Knutsson, S.

2018-03-01

Upper reaches of the Arabian Gulf consist of different types of fine sediments including the vast Mesopotamia Plain sediments, tidal flat sediments and estuarine sabkha sediments. The height of the plain starts from zero meter and increases northwards to three meters with extremely gentle gradient. The vast plain to the north of the Arabian Gulf is drained by Shat Al-Arab (Shat means river in Iraqi slang language) and Khor Al-Zubair (Khor means estuary). The former drains the extreme eastern part of the plain; whereas, the latter drains the western part. Shat Al-Arab is the resultant of confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers near Al-Qurna town; about 160 km north of the Arabian Gulf mouth at Al-Fao town; whereas, the length of Khor Al-Zubair is about 50 km; as measured from Um Qasir Harbor. The drainage system around Khor Al-Zubair is extremely fine dendritic; whereas around Shat Al-Arab is almost parallel running from both sides of the river towards the river; almost perpendicularly. The fine dendritic drainage around Khor Al-Zubair shows clear recent erosional activity, beside water divides, abandoned irrigation channels and dislocated irrigational channels and estuarine distributaries; all are good indication for a Neotectonic activity in the region. These may indicate the presence of subsurface anticlines, which may represent oil fields; since tens of subsurface anticlines occur in near surroundings, which are oil fields.

Giant magnetic impedance of wires with a thin magnetic coating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kurlyandskaya, G. V.; Bebenin, N. G.; Vas'kovsky, V. O.

2011-02-01

In this review, we analyzed and generalized the results of experimental investigations of physical processes that occur in composite wires with a thin magnetic coating under the conditions of the appearance in them of a giant magnetoimpedance (GMI) effect. Principles of the measurements of high-frequency impedance are described in short; basic definitions are given, and the differences in the linear and nonlinear GMI regimes are described. Data are systemized on the giant magnetic impedance of wires with a thin magnetic coating (composite materials) under the conditions of a strong nonlinearity of the GMI effect, which is accompanied by the appearance of higher harmonics in the output signal. The extremely high susceptibility of the harmonic parameters to external actions can be used in the technical applications for creating ultrasensitive detectors of low magnetic fields. Special attention is paid to model calculations, which confirm the fact that the experimentally observed features of a nonlinear GMI effect are connected with the high sensitivity of the magnetic system to a circular magnetic field near the spin-reorientation phase transitions. Fine features of the effective magnetic anisotropy can play the key role and therefore cannot be ignored in the general case.

SU-E-J-256: Predicting Metastasis-Free Survival of Rectal Cancer Patients Treated with Neoadjuvant Chemo-Radiotherapy by Data-Mining of CT Texture Features of Primary Lesions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhong, H; Wang, J; Shen, L

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between computed tomographic (CT) texture features of primary lesions and metastasis-free survival for rectal cancer patients; and to develop a datamining prediction model using texture features. Methods: A total of 220 rectal cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemo-radiotherapy (CRT) were enrolled in this study. All patients underwent CT scans before CRT. The primary lesions on the CT images were delineated by two experienced oncologists. The CT images were filtered by Laplacian of Gaussian (LoG) filters with different filter values (1.0–2.5: from fine to coarse). Both filtered and unfiltered imagesmore » were analyzed using Gray-level Co-occurrence Matrix (GLCM) texture analysis with different directions (transversal, sagittal, and coronal). Totally, 270 texture features with different species, directions and filter values were extracted. Texture features were examined with Student’s t-test for selecting predictive features. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was performed upon the selected features to reduce the feature collinearity. Artificial neural network (ANN) and logistic regression were applied to establish metastasis prediction models. Results: Forty-six of 220 patients developed metastasis with a follow-up time of more than 2 years. Sixtyseven texture features were significantly different in t-test (p<0.05) between patients with and without metastasis, and 12 of them were extremely significant (p<0.001). The Area-under-the-curve (AUC) of ANN was 0.72, and the concordance index (CI) of logistic regression was 0.71. The predictability of ANN was slightly better than logistic regression. Conclusion: CT texture features of primary lesions are related to metastasisfree survival of rectal cancer patients. Both ANN and logistic regression based models can be developed for prediction.« less

Fine structure of the pecten oculi in the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus).

PubMed

Braekevelt, C R

1993-01-01

The pecten oculi of the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) has been examined by light and electron microscopy. The pecten in this species is of the pleated type and is small in comparison to the size of the eyeball. It consists of 7-8 accordion folds which are joined apically by a pigmented bridge of tissue. Within each fold are numerous capillaries, larger supply and drainage vessels and plentiful pleomorphic melanocytes. The capillaries are extremely specialized vessels, most of which display plentiful microfolds on both their luminal and abluminal surfaces although some capillaries show but a few microfolds. The endothelial cell bodies are extremely thin with most organelles located near the nucleus. All capillaries are surrounded by a thick fibrillar basal lamina which is felt to be structurally important. Pericytes are a common feature within these thickened basal laminae. The numerous melanocytes form an incomplete sheath around the capillaries and are also presumed to be fulfilling a structural role. While the morphology of the pecten in the great horned owl is certainly indicative of a heavy involvement in transport, when compared to the pecten in species that are more visually oriented it is smaller, displays fewer folds and a reduced number of microfolds within the capillaries.

Design and Verification of Space Station EVA-Operated Truss Attachment System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Katell, Gabriel

2001-01-01

This paper describes the design and verification of a system used to attach two segments of the International Space Station (ISS). This system was first used in space to mate the P6 and Z1 trusses together in December 2000, through a combination of robotic and extravehicular tasks. Features that provided capture, coarse alignment, and fine alignment during the berthing process are described. Attachment of this high value hardware was critical to the ISS's sequential assembly, necessitating the inclusion of backup design and operational features. Astronauts checked for the proper performance of the alignment and bolting features during on-orbit operations. During berthing, the system accommodates truss-to-truss relative displacements that are caused by manufacturing tolerances and on-orbit thermal gradients. After bolt installation, the truss interface becomes statically determinate with respect to in-plane shear loads and isolates attach bolts from bending moments. The approach used to estimate relative displacements and the means of accommodating them is explained. Confidence in system performance was achieved through a cost-effective collection of tests and analyses, including thermal, structural, vibration, misalignment, contact dynamics, underwater simulation, and full-scale functional testing. Design considerations that have potential application to other mechanisms include accommodating variations of friction coefficients in the on-orbit joints, wrench torque tolerances, joint preload, moving element clearances at temperature extremes, and bolt-nut torque reaction.

Dynamic polarizability of tungsten atoms reconstructed from fast electrical explosion of fine wires in vacuum

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sarkisov, G. S.; Rosenthal, S. E.; Struve, K. W.

For nanosecond electrical explosion of fine metal wires in vacuum generates calibrated, radially expanded gas cylinders of metal atoms are surrounded by low-density fast expanding plasma corona. Here, a novel integrated-phase technique, based on laser interferometry, provides the dynamic dipole polarizability of metal atoms. This data was previously unavailable for tungsten atoms. Furthermore, an extremely high melting temperature and significant pre-melt electronic emission make these measurements particularly complicated for this refractory metal.

Dynamic polarizability of tungsten atoms reconstructed from fast electrical explosion of fine wires in vacuum

DOE PAGES

Sarkisov, G. S.; Rosenthal, S. E.; Struve, K. W.

2016-10-12

For nanosecond electrical explosion of fine metal wires in vacuum generates calibrated, radially expanded gas cylinders of metal atoms are surrounded by low-density fast expanding plasma corona. Here, a novel integrated-phase technique, based on laser interferometry, provides the dynamic dipole polarizability of metal atoms. This data was previously unavailable for tungsten atoms. Furthermore, an extremely high melting temperature and significant pre-melt electronic emission make these measurements particularly complicated for this refractory metal.

Visual-motor integration and fine motor skills at 6½ years of age and associations with neonatal brain volumes in children born extremely preterm in Sweden: a population-based cohort study.

PubMed

Bolk, Jenny; Padilla, Nelly; Forsman, Lea; Broström, Lina; Hellgren, Kerstin; Åden, Ulrika

2018-02-17

This exploratory study aimed to investigate associations between neonatal brain volumes and visual-motor integration (VMI) and fine motor skills in children born extremely preterm (EPT) when they reached 6½ years of age. Prospective population-based cohort study in Stockholm, Sweden, during 3 years. All children born before gestational age, 27 weeks, during 2004-2007 in Stockholm, without major morbidities and impairments, and who underwent MRI at term-equivalent age. Brain volumes were calculated using morphometric analyses in regions known to be involved in VMI and fine motor functions. VMI was assessed with The Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration-sixth edition and fine motor skills were assessed with the manual dexterity subtest from the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-second edition, at 6½ years. Associations between the brain volumes and VMI and fine motor skills were evaluated using partial correlation, adjusted for total cerebral parenchyma and sex. Out of 107 children born at gestational age <27 weeks, 83 were assessed at 6½ years and 66/83 were without major brain lesions or cerebral palsy and included in the analyses. A representative subsample underwent morphometric analyses: automatic segmentation (n=34) and atlas-based segmentation (n=26). The precentral gyrus was associated with both VMI (r=0.54, P=0.007) and fine motor skills (r=0.54, P=0.01). Associations were also seen between fine motor skills and the volume of the cerebellum (r=0.42, P=0.02), brainstem (r=0.47, P=0.008) and grey matter (r=-0.38, P=0.04). Neonatal brain volumes in areas known to be involved in VMI and fine motor skills were associated with scores for these two functions when children born EPT without major brain lesions or cerebral palsy were evaluated at 6½ years of age. Establishing clear associations between early brain volume alterations and later VMI and/or fine motor skills could make early interventions possible. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Nontoxic chemical process for in situ permeability enhancement and accelerated decontamination of fine-grain subsurface sediments

DOEpatents

Kansa, E.J.; Wijesinghe, A.M.; Viani, B.E.

1997-01-14

The remediation of heterogeneous subsurfaces is extremely time consuming and expensive with current and developing technologies. Although such technologies can adequately remove contaminants in the high hydraulic conductivity, coarse-grained sediments, they cannot access the contaminated low hydraulic conductivity fine-grained sediments. The slow bleed of contaminants from the fine-grained sediments is the primary reason why subsurface remediation is so time-consuming and expensive. This invention addresses the problem of remediating contaminated fine-grained sediments. It is intended that, in the future, a heterogeneous site be treated by a hybrid process that first remediates the high hydraulic conductivity, coarse-grained sediments, to be followed by the process, described in this invention, to treat the contaminated low hydraulic conductivity fine-grained sediments. The invention uses cationic flocculants and organic solvents to collapse the swelling negative double layer surrounding water saturated clay particles, causing a flocculated, cracked clay structure. The modification of the clay fabric in fine-grained sediments dramatically increases the hydraulic conductivity of previously very tight clays many orders of magnitude. 8 figs.

Nontoxic chemical process for in situ permeability enhancement and accelerated decontamination of fine-grain subsurface sediments

DOEpatents

Kansa, Edward J.; Wijesinghe, Ananda M.; Viani, Brian E.

1997-01-01

The remediation of heterogeneous subsurfaces is extremely time consuming and expensive with current and developing technologies. Although such technologies can adequately remove contaminants in the high hydraulic conductivity, coarse-grained sediments, they cannot access the contaminated low hydraulic conductivity fine-grained sediments. The slow bleed of contaminants from the fine-grained sediments is the primary reason why subsurface remediation is so time-consuming and expensive. This invention addresses the problem of remediating contaminated fine-grained sediments. It is intended that, in the future, a heterogeneous site be treated by a hybrid process that first remediates the high hydraulic conductivity, coarse-grained sediments, to be followed by the process, described in this invention, to treat the contaminated low hydraulic conductivity fine-grained sediments. The invention uses cationic flocculents and organic solvents to collapse the swelling negative double layer surrounding water saturated clay particles, causing a flocculated, cracked clay structure. The modification of the clay fabric in fine-grained sediments dramatically increases the hydraulic conductivity of previously very tight clays many orders of magnitude.

Fine needle aspiration biopsy of three cases of squamous cell carcinoma presenting as a thyroid mass: cytological findings and differential diagnosis.

PubMed

Rosa, M; Toronczyk, K

2012-02-01

Primary squamous cell carcinomas of the thyroid gland are extremely rare, comprising about 1% of thyroid malignancies. Although squamous cell carcinomas are readily identified as such on aspiration cytology in the majority of cases, the differentiation of primary versus metastatic tumour might not always be easy. Herein, we report three cases of squamous cell carcinomas involving the thyroid gland. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) was performed in three patients with a thyroid mass using standard guidelines. Smears were stained with Diff-Quik and Papanicolaou stains. Two patients were male and one was female, aged 59, 45 and 35 years, respectively. In all three patients a thyroid mass was present. FNAC smears in all cases showed cytological features of squamous cell carcinoma including keratinization and necrosis. After clinical and cytological correlation, one case appeared to be primary, one case metastatic, and in the third case no additional clinical information or biopsy follow-up was available for further characterization. Because primary squamous cell carcinoma of the thyroid is a rare finding, metastatic squamous cell carcinoma should always be excluded first. Metastatic disease usually presents in the setting of widespread malignancy, therefore a dedicated clinical and radiological investigation is necessary in these cases. In both clinical scenarios the patient's prognosis is poor. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Intranasal insulin to improve developmental delay in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome: an exploratory clinical trial.

PubMed

Schmidt, H; Kern, W; Giese, R; Hallschmid, M; Enders, A

2009-04-01

The 22q13 deletion syndrome (Phelan-McDermid syndrome) is characterised by a global developmental delay, absent or delayed speech, generalised hypotonia, autistic behaviour and characteristic phenotypic features. Intranasal insulin has been shown to improve declarative memory in healthy adult subjects and in patients with Alzheimer disease. To assess if intranasal insulin is also able to improve the developmental delay in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome. We performed exploratory clinical trials in six children with 22q13 deletion syndrome who received intranasal insulin over a period of 1 year. Short-term (during the first 6 weeks) and long-term effects (after 12 months of treatment) on motor skills, cognitive functions, or autonomous functions, speech and communication, emotional state, social behaviour, behavioural disorders, independence in daily living and education were assessed. The children showed marked short-term improvements in gross and fine motor activities, cognitive functions and educational level. Positive long-term effects were found for fine and gross motor activities, nonverbal communication, cognitive functions and autonomy. Possible side effects were found in one patient who displayed changes in balance, extreme sensitivity to touch and general loss of interest. One patient complained of intermittent nose bleeding. We conclude that long-term administration of intranasal insulin may benefit motor development, cognitive functions and spontaneous activity in children with 22q13 deletion syndrome.

Keypoint Density-Based Region Proposal for Fine-Grained Object Detection and Classification Using Regions with Convolutional Neural Network Features

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-15

Keypoint Density-based Region Proposal for Fine-Grained Object Detection and Classification using Regions with Convolutional Neural Network ... Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) enable them to outperform conventional techniques on standard object detection and classification tasks, their...detection accuracy and speed on the fine-grained Caltech UCSD bird dataset (Wah et al., 2011). Recently, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), a deep

Connecting traces of galaxy evolution: the missing core mass-morphological fine structure relation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonfini, P.; Bitsakis, T.; Zezas, A.; Duc, P.-A.; Iodice, E.; González-Martín, O.; Bruzual, G.; González Sanoja, A. J.

2018-01-01

Deep exposure imaging of early-type galaxies (ETGs) are revealing the second-order complexity of these objects, which have been long considered uniform, dispersion-supported spheroidals. `Fine structure' features (e.g. ripples, plumes, tidal tails, rings) as well as depleted stellar cores (i.e. central light deficits) characterize a number of massive ETG galaxies, and can be interpreted as the result of galaxy-galaxy interactions. We discuss how the time-scale for the evolution of cores and fine structures are comparable, and hence it is expected that they develop in parallel after the major interaction event which shaped the ETG. Using archival data, we compare the `depleted stellar mass' (i.e. the mass missing from the depleted stellar core) against the prominence of the fine structure features, and observe that they correlate inversely. This result confirms our expectation that, while the supermassive black hole (SMBH) binary (constituted by the SMBHs of the merger progenitors) excavates the core via three-body interactions, the gravitational potential of the newborn galaxy relaxes, and the fine structures fade below detection levels. We expect the inverse correlation to hold at least within the first Gyr from the merger which created the SMBH binary; after then, the fine structure evolves independently.

Assessing the features of extreme smog in China and the differentiated treatment strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Lu; Zhang, Zhengjun

2018-01-01

Extreme smog can have potentially harmful effects on human health, the economy and daily life. However, the average (mean) values do not provide strategically useful information on the hazard analysis and control of extreme smog. This article investigates China's smog extremes by applying extreme value analysis to hourly PM2.5 data from 2014 to 2016 obtained from monitoring stations across China. By fitting a generalized extreme value (GEV) distribution to exceedances over a station-specific extreme smog level at each monitoring location, all study stations are grouped into eight different categories based on the estimated mean and shape parameter values of fitted GEV distributions. The extreme features characterized by the mean of the fitted extreme value distribution, the maximum frequency and the tail index of extreme smog at each location are analysed. These features can provide useful information for central/local government to conduct differentiated treatments in cities within different categories and conduct similar prevention goals and control strategies among those cities belonging to the same category in a range of areas. Furthermore, hazardous hours, breaking probability and the 1-year return level of each station are demonstrated by category, based on which the future control and reduction targets of extreme smog are proposed for the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei as an example.

Fine-grained channel margin (FGCM) deposits conditioned by Large Woody Debris (LWD) in a gravel-bed river

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skalak, K. J.; Pizzuto, J. E.

2006-12-01

The purpose of this research is to examine the origin, occurrence, persistence, residence time and general significance of fine-grained channel margin storage in South River, a steep gravel-bedded stream in western Virginia. Fine-grained channel margin (FGCM) deposits in this study refers to specific in-channel deposits of mud and sand. These deposits occur primarily in the margins and near-banks regions of the channel. Fine- grained sediment storage in the near-bank regions is a result of reduced velocity caused by the bank obstructions. Nearly all of these obstructions consist of LWD accumulations in the channel. Storage occurs in four different geomorphic settings: 1) long pooled sections caused by bedrock or old mill dams, 2) the upstream ends of pools in channel margins with LWD accumulations, 3) bank obstructions usually caused by trees, 4) side channel backwaters where flow separates around islands. In approximately 38 km of river, there is 3000 m3 of fine-grained sediment stored in these features. The channel stores approximately 15 percent its total annual suspended load as fine-grained channel margin deposits. Consequently, these features represent a significant component of an annual sediment budget for this river. On average, the FGCM deposits are about 35 cm deep, 20 m long, and 4 m wide. They average 30 percent mud, 68 percent sand, and 2 percent gravel. These deposits have been cored and analyzed for Hg, grain size, loss-on-ignition, and bomb radiocarbon. Results from bomb radiocarbon analysis indicate that these features have an average age of 13 years. High Hg concentrations in fish tissue are an ongoing problem along South River, further motivating detailed study of these deposits.

Facilities Guidelines for Fine Arts Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maryland State Dept. of Education, Baltimore.

This manual of facility guidelines examines the planning process and design features and considerations for public school fine arts programs in Maryland. Planning concepts and trends are highlighted followed by planning guidelines for dance, music, theater, visual arts, general education, and performance spaces. General design considerations…

Gross and fine motor function in fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome

PubMed Central

Rasouli, Omid; Fors, Egil A; Borchgrevink, Petter Chr; Öhberg, Fredrik; Stensdotter, Ann-Katrin

2017-01-01

Purpose This paper aimed to investigate motor proficiency in fine and gross motor function, with a focus on reaction time (RT) and movement skill, in patients with fibromyalgia (FM) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) compared to healthy controls (HC). Methods A total of 60 individuals (20 CFS, 20 FM, and 20 HC), age 19–49 years, participated in this study. Gross motor function in the lower extremity was assessed using a RT task during gait initiation in response to an auditory trigger. Fine motor function in the upper extremity was measured during a precision task (the Purdue Pegboard test) where the number of pins inserted within 30 s was counted. Results No significant differences were found between FM and CFS in any parameters. FM and CFS groups had significantly longer RT than HC in the gait initiation (p=0.001, and p=0.004 respectively). In the Purdue Pegboard test, 20% in the FM group, 15% in the CFS groups, and 0% of HC group, scored below the threshold of the accepted performance. However, there were no significant differences between FM, CFS, and HC in this task (p=0.12). Conclusion Compared to controls, both CFS and FM groups displayed significantly longer RT in the gait initiation task. Generally, FM patients showed the worst results in both tests, although no group differences were found in fine motor control, according to the Purdue Pegboard test. PMID:28223840

Perceived ability to perform daily hand activities after stroke and associated factors: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Ekstrand, Elisabeth; Rylander, Lars; Lexell, Jan; Brogårdh, Christina

2016-11-02

Despite that disability of the upper extremity is common after stroke, there is limited knowledge how it influences self-perceived ability to perform daily hand activities. The aim of this study was to describe which daily hand activities that persons with mild to moderate impairments of the upper extremity after stroke perceive difficult to perform and to evaluate how several potential factors are associated with the self-perceived performance. Seventy-five persons (72 % male) with mild to moderate impairments of the upper extremity after stroke (4 to 116 months) participated. Self-perceived ability to perform daily hand activities was rated with the ABILHAND Questionnaire. The perceived ability to perform daily hand activities and the potentially associated factors (age, gender, social and vocational situation, affected hand, upper extremity pain, spasticity, grip strength, somatosensation of the hand, manual dexterity, perceived participation and life satisfaction) were evaluated by linear regression models. The activities that were perceived difficult or impossible for a majority of the participants were bimanual tasks that required fine manual dexterity of the more affected hand. The factor that had the strongest association with perceived ability to perform daily hand activities was dexterity (p < 0.001), which together with perceived participation (p = 0.002) explained 48 % of the variance in the final multivariate model. Persons with mild to moderate impairments of the upper extremity after stroke perceive that bimanual activities requiring fine manual dexterity are the most difficult to perform. Dexterity and perceived participation are factors specifically important to consider in the rehabilitation of the upper extremity after stroke in order to improve the ability to use the hands in daily life.

Measures of fine motor skills in people with tremor disorders: appraisal and interpretation.

PubMed

Norman, Kathleen E; Héroux, Martin E

2013-01-01

People with Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, or other movement disorders involving tremor have changes in fine motor skills that are among the hallmarks of these diseases. Numerous measurement tools have been created and other methods devised to measure such changes in fine motor skills. Measurement tools may focus on specific features - e.g., motor skills or dexterity, slowness in movement execution associated with parkinsonian bradykinesia, or magnitude of tremor. Less obviously, some tools may be better suited than others for specific goals such as detecting subtle dysfunction early in disease, revealing aspects of brain function affected by disease, or tracking changes expected from treatment or disease progression. The purpose of this review is to describe and appraise selected measurement tools of fine motor skills appropriate for people with tremor disorders. In this context, we consider the tools' content - i.e., what movement features they focus on. In addition, we consider how measurement tools of fine motor skills relate to measures of a person's disease state or a person's function. These considerations affect how one should select and interpret the results of these tools in laboratory and clinical contexts.

Chimaeric sounds reveal dichotomies in auditory perception

PubMed Central

Smith, Zachary M.; Delgutte, Bertrand; Oxenham, Andrew J.

2008-01-01

By Fourier's theorem1, signals can be decomposed into a sum of sinusoids of different frequencies. This is especially relevant for hearing, because the inner ear performs a form of mechanical Fourier transform by mapping frequencies along the length of the cochlear partition. An alternative signal decomposition, originated by Hilbert2, is to factor a signal into the product of a slowly varying envelope and a rapidly varying fine time structure. Neurons in the auditory brainstem3–6 sensitive to these features have been found in mammalian physiological studies. To investigate the relative perceptual importance of envelope and fine structure, we synthesized stimuli that we call ‘auditory chimaeras’, which have the envelope of one sound and the fine structure of another. Here we show that the envelope is most important for speech reception, and the fine structure is most important for pitch perception and sound localization. When the two features are in conflict, the sound of speech is heard at a location determined by the fine structure, but the words are identified according to the envelope. This finding reveals a possible acoustic basis for the hypothesized ‘what’ and ‘where’ pathways in the auditory cortex7–10. PMID:11882898

Urban, Forest, and Agricultural AIS Data: Fine Spectral Structure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vanderbilt, V. C.

1985-01-01

Spectra acquired by the Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (AIS) near Lafayette, IN, Ely, MN, and over the Stanford University campus, CA were analyzed for fine spectral structure using two techniques: the ratio of radiance of a ground target to the radiance of a standard and also the correlation coefficient of radiances at adjacent wavelengths. The results show ramp like features in the ratios. These features are due to the biochemical composition of the leaf and to the optical scattering properties of its cuticle. The size and shape of the ramps vary with ground cover.

Projected changes of extreme precipitation over Contiguous United States with Nested regional climate model (NRCM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, J.

2013-12-01

Extreme weather events have already significantly influenced North America. During 2005-2011, the extreme events have increased by 250 %, from four or fewer events occurring in 2005, while 14 events occurring in 2011 (www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/). In addition, extreme rainfall amounts, frequency, and intensity were all expected to increase under greenhouse warming scenarios (Wehner 2005; Kharin et al. 2007; Tebaldi et al. 2006). Global models are powerful tools to investigate the climate and climate change on large scales. However, such models do not represent local terrain and mesoscale weather systems well owing to their coarse horizontal resolution (150-300 km). To capture the fine-scale features of extreme weather events, regional climate models (RCMs) with a more realistic representation of the complex terrain and heterogeneous land surfaces are needed (Mass et al. 2002). This study uses the Nested Regional Climate model (NRCM) to perform regional scale climate simulations on a 12-km × 12-km high resolution scale over North America (including Alaska; with 600 × 515 grid cells at longitude and latitude), known as CORDEX_North America, instead of small regions as studied previously (eg., Dominguez et al. 2012; Gao et al. 2012). The performance and the biases of the NRCM extreme precipitation calculations (2000-2010) have been evaluated with PRISM precipitation (Daly et al. 1997) by Wang and Kotamarthi (2013): the NRCM replicated very well the monthly amount of extreme precipitation with less than 3% overestimation over East CONUS, and the frequency of extremes over West CONUS and upper Mississippi River Basin. The Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 8.5 and RCP 4.5 from the new Community Earth System Model version 1.0 (CESM v1.0) are dynamically downscaled to predict the extreme rainfall events at the end-of-century (2085-2095) and to explore the uncertainties of future extreme precipitation induced by different scenarios over distinct regions. We have corrected the CO2 atmospheric concentration in the longwave/shortwave radiation schemes of the NRCM according to the recommended datasets by CMIP5 (Clarke et al. 2007; Riahi et al. 2007). We have also corrected an inconsistency in skin temperature during the downscaling process by modifying the land/sea mask of CLM 4.0 as mentioned by Gao et al. (2012). Acknowledgements: This work was supported under a military interdepartmental purchase request from the SERDP, RC-2242, through U.S. Department of Energy contract DE-AC02-06CH11357.

Feature Masking in Computer Game Promotes Visual Imagery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Glenn Gordon; Morey, Jim; Tjoe, Edwin

2007-01-01

Can learning of mental imagery skills for visualizing shapes be accelerated with feature masking? Chemistry, physics fine arts, military tactics, and laparoscopic surgery often depend on mentally visualizing shapes in their absence. Does working with "spatial feature-masks" (skeletal shapes, missing key identifying portions) encourage people to…

Fine needle aspiration cytology of subcutaneous cysticercosis of the breast. Case report and pathogenic discussion.

PubMed

Vuong, P N

1989-01-01

A case of subcutaneous cysticercosis of the breast diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology is reported. The cytologic preparations showed the presence of many inflammatory cells mixed with spiked spherules resembling the rambutan tropical fruit. These spherules arose from the degenerated integument of the parasite found in the histologically excised cyst. They are suggestive of the presence of an encysted flat worm, but are not specific for cysticercosis, whose identification is based on the study of the cephalic extremity of the parasite.

Designing and establishing a fine hardwood timber plantation

Treesearch

James R. McKenna; Lenny D. Farlee

2013-01-01

Today, new tools and lessons learned from established plantations of black walnut and other fine hardwoods can provide landowners with guidelines to design and establish successful plantations to produce quality timber for the future. From earlier plantations now maturing, we can recognize design features critical during establishment. Current production practices...

Coupling fine-scale root and canopy structure using ground-based remote sensing

Treesearch

Brady Hardiman; Christopher Gough; John Butnor; Gil Bohrer; Matteo Detto; Peter Curtis

2017-01-01

Ecosystem physical structure, defined by the quantity and spatial distribution of biomass, influences a range of ecosystem functions. Remote sensing tools permit the non-destructive characterization of canopy and root features, potentially providing opportunities to link above- and belowground structure at fine spatial resolution in...

Relations between Automatically Extracted Motion Features and the Quality of Mother-Infant Interactions at 4 and 13 Months

PubMed Central

Egmose, Ida; Varni, Giovanna; Cordes, Katharina; Smith-Nielsen, Johanne; Væver, Mette S.; Køppe, Simo; Cohen, David; Chetouani, Mohamed

2017-01-01

Bodily movements are an essential component of social interactions. However, the role of movement in early mother-infant interaction has received little attention in the research literature. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between automatically extracted motion features and interaction quality in mother-infant interactions at 4 and 13 months. The sample consisted of 19 mother-infant dyads at 4 months and 33 mother-infant dyads at 13 months. The coding system Coding Interactive Behavior (CIB) was used for rating the quality of the interactions. Kinetic energy of upper-body, arms and head motion was calculated and used as segmentation in order to extract coarse- and fine-grained motion features. Spearman correlations were conducted between the composites derived from the CIB and the coarse- and fine-grained motion features. At both 4 and 13 months, longer durations of maternal arm motion and infant upper-body motion were associated with more aversive interactions, i.e., more parent-led interactions and more infant negativity. Further, at 4 months, the amount of motion silence was related to more adaptive interactions, i.e., more sensitive and child-led interactions. Analyses of the fine-grained motion features showed that if the mother coordinates her head movements with her infant's head movements, the interaction is rated as more adaptive in terms of less infant negativity and less dyadic negative states. We found more and stronger correlations between the motion features and the interaction qualities at 4 compared to 13 months. These results highlight that motion features are related to the quality of mother-infant interactions. Factors such as infant age and interaction set-up are likely to modify the meaning and importance of different motion features. PMID:29326626

Relations between Automatically Extracted Motion Features and the Quality of Mother-Infant Interactions at 4 and 13 Months.

PubMed

Egmose, Ida; Varni, Giovanna; Cordes, Katharina; Smith-Nielsen, Johanne; Væver, Mette S; Køppe, Simo; Cohen, David; Chetouani, Mohamed

2017-01-01

Bodily movements are an essential component of social interactions. However, the role of movement in early mother-infant interaction has received little attention in the research literature. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between automatically extracted motion features and interaction quality in mother-infant interactions at 4 and 13 months. The sample consisted of 19 mother-infant dyads at 4 months and 33 mother-infant dyads at 13 months. The coding system Coding Interactive Behavior (CIB) was used for rating the quality of the interactions. Kinetic energy of upper-body, arms and head motion was calculated and used as segmentation in order to extract coarse- and fine-grained motion features. Spearman correlations were conducted between the composites derived from the CIB and the coarse- and fine-grained motion features. At both 4 and 13 months, longer durations of maternal arm motion and infant upper-body motion were associated with more aversive interactions, i.e., more parent-led interactions and more infant negativity. Further, at 4 months, the amount of motion silence was related to more adaptive interactions, i.e., more sensitive and child-led interactions. Analyses of the fine-grained motion features showed that if the mother coordinates her head movements with her infant's head movements, the interaction is rated as more adaptive in terms of less infant negativity and less dyadic negative states. We found more and stronger correlations between the motion features and the interaction qualities at 4 compared to 13 months. These results highlight that motion features are related to the quality of mother-infant interactions. Factors such as infant age and interaction set-up are likely to modify the meaning and importance of different motion features.

Deep feature extraction and combination for synthetic aperture radar target classification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amrani, Moussa; Jiang, Feng

2017-10-01

Feature extraction has always been a difficult problem in the classification performance of synthetic aperture radar automatic target recognition (SAR-ATR). It is very important to select discriminative features to train a classifier, which is a prerequisite. Inspired by the great success of convolutional neural network (CNN), we address the problem of SAR target classification by proposing a feature extraction method, which takes advantage of exploiting the extracted deep features from CNNs on SAR images to introduce more powerful discriminative features and robust representation ability for them. First, the pretrained VGG-S net is fine-tuned on moving and stationary target acquisition and recognition (MSTAR) public release database. Second, after a simple preprocessing is performed, the fine-tuned network is used as a fixed feature extractor to extract deep features from the processed SAR images. Third, the extracted deep features are fused by using a traditional concatenation and a discriminant correlation analysis algorithm. Finally, for target classification, K-nearest neighbors algorithm based on LogDet divergence-based metric learning triplet constraints is adopted as a baseline classifier. Experiments on MSTAR are conducted, and the classification accuracy results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms the state-of-the-art methods.

A NOISE ADAPTIVE FUZZY EQUALIZATION METHOD FOR PROCESSING SOLAR EXTREME ULTRAVIOLET IMAGES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Druckmueller, M., E-mail: druckmuller@fme.vutbr.cz

A new image enhancement tool ideally suited for the visualization of fine structures in extreme ultraviolet images of the corona is presented in this paper. The Noise Adaptive Fuzzy Equalization method is particularly suited for the exceptionally high dynamic range images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly instrument on the Solar Dynamics Observatory. This method produces artifact-free images and gives significantly better results than methods based on convolution or Fourier transform which are often used for that purpose.

Frequency metrology using highly charged ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crespo López-Urrutia, J. R.

2016-06-01

Due to the scaling laws of relativistic fine structure splitting, many forbidden optical transitions appear within the ground state configurations of highly charged ions (HCI). In some hydrogen-like ions, even the hyperfine splitting of the 1s ground state gives rise to optical transitions. Given the very low polarizability of HCI, such laser-accessible transitions are extremely impervious to external perturbations and systematics that limit optical clock performance and arise from AC and DC Stark effects, such as black-body radiation and light shifts. Moreover, AC and DC Zeeman splitting are symmetric due to the much larger relativistic spin-orbit coupling and corresponding fine-structure splitting. Appropriate choice of states or magnetic sub-states with suitable total angular momentum and magnetic quantum numbers can lead to a cancellation of residual quadrupolar shifts. All these properties are very advantageous for the proposed use of HCI forbidden lines as optical frequency standards. Extremely magnified relativistic, quantum electrodynamic, and nuclear size contributions to the binding energies of the optically active electrons make HCI ideal tools for fundamental research, as in proposed studies of a possible time variation of the fine structure constant. Beyond this, HCI that cannot be photoionized by vacuum-ultraviolet photons could also provide frequency standards for future lasers operating in that range.

Fine figure correction and other applications using novel MRF fluid designed for ultra-low roughness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maloney, Chris; Oswald, Eric S.; Dumas, Paul

2015-10-01

An increasing number of technologies require ultra-low roughness (ULR) surfaces. Magnetorheological Finishing (MRF) is one of the options for meeting the roughness specifications for high-energy laser, EUV and X-ray applications. A novel MRF fluid, called C30, has been developed to finish surfaces to ULR. This novel MRF fluid is able to achieve <1.5Å RMS roughness on fused silica and other materials, but has a lower material removal rate with respect to other MRF fluids. As a result of these properties, C30 can also be used for applications in addition to finishing ULR surfaces. These applications include fine figure correction, figure correcting extremely soft materials and removing cosmetic defects. The effectiveness of these new applications is explored through experimental data. The low removal rate of C30 gives MRF the capability to fine figure correct low amplitude errors that are usually difficult to correct with higher removal rate fluids. The ability to figure correct extremely soft materials opens up MRF to a new realm of materials that are difficult to polish. C30 also offers the ability to remove cosmetic defects that often lead to failure during visual quality inspections. These new applications for C30 expand the niche in which MRF is typically used for.

A cortically-inspired model for inverse kinematics computation of a humanoid finger with mechanically coupled joints.

PubMed

Gentili, Rodolphe J; Oh, Hyuk; Kregling, Alissa V; Reggia, James A

2016-05-19

The human hand's versatility allows for robust and flexible grasping. To obtain such efficiency, many robotic hands include human biomechanical features such as fingers having their two last joints mechanically coupled. Although such coupling enables human-like grasping, controlling the inverse kinematics of such mechanical systems is challenging. Here we propose a cortical model for fine motor control of a humanoid finger, having its two last joints coupled, that learns the inverse kinematics of the effector. This neural model functionally mimics the population vector coding as well as sensorimotor prediction processes of the brain's motor/premotor and parietal regions, respectively. After learning, this neural architecture could both overtly (actual execution) and covertly (mental execution or motor imagery) perform accurate, robust and flexible finger movements while reproducing the main human finger kinematic states. This work contributes to developing neuro-mimetic controllers for dexterous humanoid robotic/prosthetic upper-extremities, and has the potential to promote human-robot interactions.

Self-Assembled Fe-N-Doped Carbon Nanotube Aerogels with Single-Atom Catalyst Feature as High-Efficiency Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhu, Chengzhou; Fu, Shaofang; Song, Junhua

Finely controlled synthesis of high active and robust non-precious metal catalysts with excellent electrocatalytic efficiency towards oxygen reduction reaction is extremely vital for successful implementation of fuel cells and metal batteries. Unprecedented oxygen reduction reaction electrocatalytic performances and the diversified synthetic procedure in term of favorable structure/morphology characteristics make transition metals-derived M–N–C (M=Fe, Co) structures the most promising nanocatalysts. Herein, using the nitrogen-containing small molecular and inorganic salt as precursors and ultrathin tellurium nanowires as templates, we successfully synthesized a series of well-defined M-N-doped hollow carbon nanowire aerogels through one step hydrothermal route and subsequent facile annealing treatment. Taking advantagemore » of the porous nanostructures, one-dimensional building block as well as homogeneity of active sites, the resultant Fe-N-doped carbon hollow nanowire aerogels exhibited excellent ORR electrocatalytic performance even better than commercial Pt/C in alkaline solution, holding great potential in fuel cell applications.« less

Auditory-motor entrainment and phonological skills: precise auditory timing hypothesis (PATH).

PubMed

Tierney, Adam; Kraus, Nina

2014-01-01

Phonological skills are enhanced by music training, but the mechanisms enabling this cross-domain enhancement remain unknown. To explain this cross-domain transfer, we propose a precise auditory timing hypothesis (PATH) whereby entrainment practice is the core mechanism underlying enhanced phonological abilities in musicians. Both rhythmic synchronization and language skills such as consonant discrimination, detection of word and phrase boundaries, and conversational turn-taking rely on the perception of extremely fine-grained timing details in sound. Auditory-motor timing is an acoustic feature which meets all five of the pre-conditions necessary for cross-domain enhancement to occur (Patel, 2011, 2012, 2014). There is overlap between the neural networks that process timing in the context of both music and language. Entrainment to music demands more precise timing sensitivity than does language processing. Moreover, auditory-motor timing integration captures the emotion of the trainee, is repeatedly practiced, and demands focused attention. The PATH predicts that musical training emphasizing entrainment will be particularly effective in enhancing phonological skills.

THE UBIQUITOUS PRESENCE OF LOOPLIKE FINE STRUCTURE INSIDE SOLAR ACTIVE REGIONS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Y.-M., E-mail: yi.wang@nrl.navy.mil

Although most of the solar surface outside active regions (ARs) is pervaded by small-scale fields of mixed polarity, this magnetic “carpet” or “junkyard” is thought to be largely absent inside AR plages and strong network. However, using extreme-ultraviolet images and line-of-sight magnetograms from the Solar Dynamics Observatory, we find that unipolar flux concentrations, both inside and outside ARs, often have small, loop-shaped Fe ix 17.1 and Fe xii 19.3 nm features embedded within them, even though no minority-polarity flux is visible in the corresponding magnetograms. Such looplike structures, characterized by horizontal sizes of ∼3–5 Mm and varying on timescales ofmore » minutes or less, are seen inside bright 17.1 nm moss, as well as in fainter moss-like regions associated with weaker network outside ARs. We also note a tendency for bright coronal loops to show compact, looplike features at their footpoints. Based on these observations, we suggest that present-day magnetograms may be substantially underrepresenting the amount of minority-polarity flux inside plages and strong network, and that reconnection between small bipoles and the overlying large-scale field could be a major source of coronal heating both in ARs and in the quiet Sun.« less

Lipoblastoma: a clinicopathologic review of 23 cases from a major tertiary care center plus detailed review of literature.

PubMed

Abdul-Ghafar, Jamshid; Ahmad, Zubair; Tariq, Muhammad Usman; Kayani, Naila; Uddin, Nasir

2018-01-17

Lipoblastoma is a rare neoplasm that occurs mostly in infants and children. Although benign, it has a tendency for local recurrence. Clinical and pathological features of 23 cases of lipoblastoma described. Patients' age ranged from 8 months to 18 years with mean and median age 4.1 and 2.5 years, respectively. Male:female ratio was 2.8:1. Most common sites were lower extremities (9 cases), followed by abdominal cavity and retroperitoneum (4 cases), and scrotum/groin (3 cases). Grossly, 22 tumors were well circumscribed and multi nodular. All cases showed lobules composed of adipocytes and lipoblasts with intervening fibrous septa and fine vascular network. Myxoid change, capsule formation and septation were seen in all cases. Zonation was seen in 2 cases. Follow-up was available in 14 out of 23 patients. Of these, 13 were alive and free of disease with no evidence of any recurrent lesion. One patient with a mediastinal infiltrating lipoblastoma experienced 4 recurrences. Lipoblastoma is a benign adipocytic neoplasm of infants and young children. Correlation of clinical and histological features helps in reaching a correct diagnosis. Owing to a high recurrence rate following incomplete resection, a complete resection is essential. Prognosis is excellent after complete resection.

Helium induced fine structure in the electronic spectra of anthracene derivatives doped into superfluid helium nanodroplets

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pentlehner, D.; Slenczka, A., E-mail: alkwin.slenczka@chemie.uni-regensburg.de

2015-01-07

Electronic spectra of organic molecules doped into superfluid helium nanodroplets show characteristic features induced by the helium environment. Besides a solvent induced shift of the electronic transition frequency, in many cases, a spectral fine structure can be resolved for electronic and vibronic transitions which goes beyond the expected feature of a zero phonon line accompanied by a phonon wing as known from matrix isolation spectroscopy. The spectral shape of the zero phonon line and the helium induced phonon wing depends strongly on the dopant species. Phonon wings, for example, are reported ranging from single or multiple sharp transitions to broadmore » (Δν > 100 cm{sup −1}) diffuse signals. Despite the large number of example spectra in the literature, a quantitative understanding of the helium induced fine structure of the zero phonon line and the phonon wing is missing. Our approach is a systematic investigation of related molecular compounds, which may help to shed light on this key feature of microsolvation in superfluid helium droplets. This paper is part of a comparative study of the helium induced fine structure observed in electronic spectra of anthracene derivatives with particular emphasis on a spectrally sharp multiplet splitting at the electronic origin. In addition to previously discussed species, 9-cyanoanthracene and 9-chloroanthracene will be presented in this study for the first time.« less

Platyamoeba pseudovannellida n. sp., a naked amoeba with wide salt tolerance isolated from the Salton Sea, California.

PubMed

Hauer, G; Rogerson, A; Anderson, O R

2001-01-01

A new species of naked amoeba, Platyamoeba pseudovannellida n.sp., is described on the basis of light microscopic and fine structural features. The amoeba was isolated from the Salton Sea, California, from water at a salinity of ca. 44%. Locomotive amoebae occasionally had a spatulate outline and floating cells had radiating pseudopodia, sometimes with pointed tips. Both these features are reminiscent of the genus Vannella. However, the surface coat (glycocalyx) as revealed by TEM indicates that this is a species of Platyamoeba. Although salinity was not used as a diagnostic feature, this species was found to have remarkable tolerance to fluctuating salinity levels, even when changes were rapid. Amoebae survived over the range 0 per thousand to 150 per thousand salt and grew within the range 0 per thousand to 138 per thousand salt. The generation time of cells averaged 29 h and was not markedly affected by salt concentration. This is longer than expected for an amoeba of this size and suggests a high energetic cost of coping with salinity changes. The morphology of cells changed with increasing salinity: at 0 per thousand cells were flattened and active and at the other extreme (138 per thousand) amoebae were wrinkled and domed and cell movement was very slow. At the ultrastructural level, the cytoplasm of cells grown at high salinity (98 per thousand was considerably denser than that of cells reared at 0 per thousand.

Hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy with proximal dominancy in the lower extremities, urinary disturbance, and paroxysmal dry cough.

PubMed

Miura, Shiroh; Shibata, Hiroki; Kida, Hiroshi; Noda, Kazuhito; Tomiyasu, Katsuro; Yamamoto, Ken; Iwaki, Akiko; Ayabe, Mitsuyoshi; Aizawa, Hisamichi; Taniwaki, Takayuki; Fukumaki, Yasuyuki

2008-10-15

We studied a four-generation pedigree of a Japanese family with hereditary neuropathy to elucidate the genetic basis of this disease. Twelve members of the family were enrolled in this study. The clinical features were neurogenic muscle weakness with proximal dominancy in the lower extremities, sensory involvement, areflexia, fine postural tremors, painful muscle cramps, elevated creatine kinase levels, recurrent paroxysmal dry cough, and neurogenic bladder. We performed a genome-wide search using genetic loci spaced at about 13 Mb intervals. Although nine chromosomes (1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 17, 19, and 22) had at least one region in which the logarithm of odds (LOD) score was over 1.0, no loci fulfilled the criteria for significant evidence of linkage. Moreover, we analyzed an extra 14 markers on 3p12-q13 (the locus of hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy, proximal dominant form) and an extra five markers on 3p22-p24 (the locus of hereditary sensory neuropathy with chronic cough) and observed LOD scores of <-3 on both 3p12-q13 and 3p22-p24. Mutation scanning of the entire coding regions of the MPZ and PMP22 genes revealed no mutations. We conclude that the disorder described here is a newly classified hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy with autosomal dominant inheritance.

One last look from the dark side: Cassini's final views of Saturn's rings from with the planet's shadow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hedman, Matthew M.; Burns, Joseph A.; Nicholson, Philip D.; Tiscareno, Matthew S.; Evans, Michael W.; Baker, Emily

2017-10-01

Around the start of Cassini's Grand Finale, the spacecraft passed a dozen times through Saturn's shadow, enabling its cameras and spectrometers to observe the ring system at extremely high phase angles. These opportunities yielded the best combination of signal-to-noise and resolution for many parts of Saturn's fainter dusty rings, and allowed the main rings to be viewed from previously inaccessible lighting geometries. We will highlight some of the surprising features found in the data obtained by Cassini's Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) and Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) during these time periods, and discuss what they might be able to tell us about the structure and dynamics of Saturn's various ring systems. For example, ISS captured global views of the entire ring system that reveal previously unseen structures in dust-filled regions like the D ring and the zone between Saturn's F and G rings, as well as novel fine-scale structures in the core of the E ring near Enceladus' orbit. These structures provide new insights into the forces that sculpt these tenuous rings. ISS and VIMS also detected an unexpected brightening and highly unusual spectra of the main rings at extremely high phase angles. These data may provide novel information about the distribution of small grains and particles in these denser rings.

Temporal Fine Structure and Applications to Cochlear Implants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Xing

2013-01-01

Complex broadband sounds are decomposed by the auditory filters into a series of relatively narrowband signals, each of which conveys information about the sound by time-varying features. The slow changes in the overall amplitude constitute envelope, while the more rapid events, such as zero crossings, constitute temporal fine structure (TFS).…

RESOLVING FINE SCALE IN AIR TOXICS MODELING AND THE IMPORTANCE OF ITS SUB-GRID VARIABILITY FOR EXPOSURE ESTIMATES

EPA Science Inventory

This presentation explains the importance of the fine-scale features for air toxics exposure modeling. The paper presents a new approach to combine local-scale and regional model results for the National Air Toxic Assessment. The technique has been evaluated with a chemical tra...

A study of extreme carbon stars. I - Silicon carbide emission features

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cohen, M.

1984-01-01

10-micron spectra of many extreme carbon stars reveal a prominent emission feature near 11 microns. This is compared with laboratory spectra of SiC grains. Two distinct types of features are found, perhaps indicative of different mechanisms of grain formation in different stars. Estimates are made of probable column densities and total masses of SiC in the circumstellar shells.

Toxoplasma lymphadenitis diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration cytology: a rare finding.

PubMed

Hosokawa, S; Kusama, Y; Ono, T; Mineta, H

2014-06-01

There are only very few reports of cervical toxoplasma lymphadenitis being diagnosed exclusively via fine-needle aspiration cytology (with serology). We describe a case of toxoplasma lymphadenitis that was successfully diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration cytology. The case involved a male patient who was immunocompromised as a result of recurrent acute myelogenous leukaemia with cervical lymphadenopathy. The biopsy showed typical features of a well-defined pseudocyst containing Toxoplasma gondii tachyzoites. Toxoplasma lymphadenitis is a common cause of lymph node enlargement. Fine-needle aspiration cytology is a useful method for diagnosing and differentiating toxoplasma lymphadenitis from more serious causes of lymphadenopathy, such as metastatic lymphadenopathy or lymphoma.

A resected perivascular epithelioid cell tumor (PEComa) of the pancreas diagnosed using endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration.

PubMed

Okuwaki, Kosuke; Kida, Mitsuhiro; Masutani, Hironori; Yamauchi, Hiroshi; Katagiri, Hiroyuki; Mikami, Tetuo; Miyazawa, Shiro; Iwai, Tomohisa; Takezawa, Miyoko; Imaizumi, Hiroshi; Koizumi, Wasaburo

2013-01-01

Primary perivascular epithelioid cell tumors (PEComas) of the pancreas are extremely rare. We herein report our experience with a patient who had a primary PEComa of the pancreas that was diagnosed by the preoperative histopathological examination of a biopsy specimen obtained by endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA). The patient was a 43-year-old woman whose chief complaint was abdominal pain. Imaging studies revealed a pancreatic tumor. Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), solid pseudopapillary tumor and neuroendocrine tumor were considered in the differential diagnosis. A histopathological examination of a specimen of the tumor obtained using EUS-FNA showed spindle-shaped tumor cells with enlarged nuclei and eosinophilic cytoplasm. The tumor cells proliferated in a sheet-like fashion and stained positive for the melanoma-associated antigen HMB-45. A PEComa was thus diagnosed. If an adequate tumor specimen can be obtained using EUS-FNA, immunostaining may facilitate the diagnosis of extremely rare diseases and therefore assist in deciding the treatment policy.

Formation of fine {gamma} grain structure through fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellar structure in Ti-rich TiAl alloy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kumagai, T.; Abe, E.; Nakamura, M.

1997-12-31

Microstructural development of an extremely fine {alpha}{sub 2}-Ti{sub 32}Al/{gamma}-TiAl lamellar structure, which was formed by ice water quenching after solution-treatment in a high-temperature {alpha}-Ti phase field for a long period of time, was examined during isothermal treatment. In an as-quenched Ti-48at.%Al alloy, the massively transformed {gamma} ({gamma}{sub m}) and untransformed (meaning massively untransformed) fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellar regions were observed. Fine {gamma} grains, which were similar to {gamma}{sub m}, were generated both within the fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellae and at the boundary area between the {gamma}{sub m} and the fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellar regions by aging at low-temperature (1,173 K)more » for a short time (180s). Further aging (1.8ks) caused the coarsening of these newly generated fine {gamma} grains. On the other hand, the coarsening of the {gamma} grains occurred by a high-temperature (1,323 K) aging treatment even for 180s. Fine {alpha}{sub 2} plates and particles, which were aligned to a particular direction, were observed in the {gamma} grain interiors, indicating that the newly generated {gamma} grains grew at the expense of the fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellae. It can be considered that the {gamma} grain formation through the fine {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellae is closely related to the {alpha}{sub 2}{yields}{gamma} reaction of the {alpha}{sub 2} plates sandwiched by the {gamma} plates, and needs the fast heating rate enough to overcome the {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma}{yields}{gamma}/{gamma} lamellae reaction.« less

Current status of fine needle aspiration for thyroid nodules.

PubMed

Ogilvie, Jennifer B; Piatigorsky, Eli J; Clark, Orlo H

2006-01-01

When not to perform fine needle aspiration of a thyroid nodule In summary, FNA of thyroid nodules has become one of the most useful, safe, and accurate tools in the diagnosis of thyroid pathology. Thyroid nodules that should be considered for FNA include any firm, palpable, solitary nodule or nodule associated with worrisome clinical features (rapid growth, attachment to adjacent tissues, new hoarseness, or palpable lymphadenopathy). FNA should also be performed on nodules with suspicious ultrasonographic features (microcalcifications, rounded shape, predominantly solid composition); dominant or atypical nodules in multinodular goiter; complex or recurrent cystic nodules; or any nodule associated with palpable or ultrasonographically abnormal cervical lymph nodes. Finally, FNA should be performed on any abnormal-appearing or palpable cervical lymph nodes. The management of thyroid nodules based on FNA findings is summarized in Table 2. It can be argued that in certain circumstances the results of thyroid FNA do not change the surgical management of a thyroid nodule, and thus preoperative FNA may be unnecessary. These cases include solitary nodules in patients who have a strong family history of thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia type II, or radiation to the head and neck. These patients when they have thyroid nodules have at least a 40% risk for thyroid cancer and frequent multifocal or bilateral disease and should undergo total thyroidectomy with or without central neck lymph node dissection. Patients who have multinodular goiter and compressive symptoms, patients who have Graves disease and a thyroid nodule, or patients who have large (greater than 4 cm) or symptomatic unilateral thyroid nodules could also be considered for total thyroidectomy or lobectomy as indicated without preoperative FNA. Finally, patients who have a solitary hyperfunctioning nodule on radioiodine scan and a suppressed TSH have an extremely low incidence of malignancy and may be considered for therapeutic thyroid lobectomy or radioiodine ablation as indicated without undergoing FNA biopsy.

Mapping Henry: Synchrotron-sourced X-ray fluorescence mapping and ultra-high-definition scanning of an early Tudor portrait of Henry VIII

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dredge, Paula; Ives, Simon; Howard, Daryl L.; Spiers, Kathryn M.; Yip, Andrew; Kenderdine, Sarah

2015-11-01

A portrait of Henry VIII on oak panel c. 1535 has recently undergone technical examination to inform questions regarding authorship and the painting's relationship to a group of similar works in the collections of the National Portrait Gallery, London, and the Society of Antiquaries. Due to previous conservation treatments of the painting, the conventional transmission X-radiograph image was difficult to interpret. As a result, the painting underwent high-definition X-ray fluorescence (XRF) elemental mapping on the X-ray fluorescence microscopy beamline of the Australian Synchrotron. Scans were conducted at 12.6 and 18.5 keV, below and above the lead (Pb) L edges, respectively. Typical scan parameters were 120 μm pixel size at 7 ms dwell time, with the largest scan covering an area 545 × 287 mm2 collected in 23 h (10.8 MP). XRF mapping of the panel has guided the conservation treatment of the painting and the revelation of previously obscured features. It has also provided insight into the process of making of the painting. The informative and detailed elemental maps, alongside ultra-high-definition scans of the painting undertaken before and after varnish and over-paint removal, have assisted in comparison of the finely painted details with the London paintings. The resolution offered by the combination of imaging techniques identifies pigment distribution at an extremely fine scale, enabling a new understanding of the artist's paint application.

Persistence of Episodic Extreme Events: Sustained Colluvial Contributions of Fine Sediment to Vermont Rivers Post-Irene

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dethier, E.; Magilligan, F. J.; Renshaw, C. E.; Sinclair, D.

2014-12-01

Tropical Storm Irene generated devastating floods in New England in 2011, causing more than $500 million of damage. In intervening years, many geomorphic signs of disturbance have attenuated, suggesting that impacts may be ephemeral. Yet persistent impact continues: channel-proximal landslide scars linger as point sources of fine sediment 3 yrs post-Irene. We evaluate the legacy of this major disturbance while also testing conceptual models of hillslope-channel connectivity and subsequent downstream sediment routing. We measure sustained landslide erosion by comparing DEMs generated by a Terrestrial Laser Scanner and trace sediment mobility using in-channel measurements of embeddedness, sediment concentration, and fallout radionuclide activity. We augmented detailed temporal sampling of an 850 m2 landslide along a 2nd-order stream with a spatially robust summer 2014 field campaign, scanning an additional 12 landslides. The initially sampled landslide eroded 250 m3 of sediment between fall 2013 and May 2014, averaging 0.3 m of erosion with nearly all erosion occurring during a two-week spring snowmelt. Landslide sediments had high measured 7Be activity (t1/2=53.4 d), caused by subaerial exposure; sediment collected downstream of the landslide had higher 7Be activity than that collected upstream, suggesting landslide provenance. Channel sediment upstream of the landslide had remained in the channel long enough for 7Be to decay below detectable activity. Embeddedness, a measure of fine sediment on a channel bed, was higher downstream of the landslide than upstream. Remote sensing reveals >50 similar landslides within the White River alone, and hundreds more in Vermont. Thus, landslide scar inputs may continue to influence the regional fine sediment budget. Ongoing successive scans in multiple watersheds show erosion continues in summer, an observation corroborated by elevated suspended sediment concentrations downstream of landslides after rain events. Summertime erosion has generally been low, but one extreme storm triggered >4000 m3 of erosion on a 3500 m2 landslide along the 5th-order Williams River, averaging 1.3 m erosion across the landslide. Understanding the loci of affected reaches and the magnitude of the continued effect is critical in assessing the long-term legacy of extreme events.

Individual differences in attention strategies during detection, fine discrimination, and coarse discrimination

PubMed Central

Hecker, Elizabeth A.; Serences, John T.; Srinivasan, Ramesh

2013-01-01

Interacting with the environment requires the ability to flexibly direct attention to relevant features. We examined the degree to which individuals attend to visual features within and across Detection, Fine Discrimination, and Coarse Discrimination tasks. Electroencephalographic (EEG) responses were measured to an unattended peripheral flickering (4 or 6 Hz) grating while individuals (n = 33) attended to orientations that were offset by 0°, 10°, 20°, 30°, 40°, and 90° from the orientation of the unattended flicker. These unattended responses may be sensitive to attentional gain at the attended spatial location, since attention to features enhances early visual responses throughout the visual field. We found no significant differences in tuning curves across the three tasks in part due to individual differences in strategies. We sought to characterize individual attention strategies using hierarchical Bayesian modeling, which grouped individuals into families of curves that reflect attention to the physical target orientation (“on-channel”) or away from the target orientation (“off-channel”) or a uniform distribution of attention. The different curves were related to behavioral performance; individuals with “on-channel” curves had lower thresholds than individuals with uniform curves. Individuals with “off-channel” curves during Fine Discrimination additionally had lower thresholds than those assigned to uniform curves, highlighting the perceptual benefits of attending away from the physical target orientation during fine discriminations. Finally, we showed that a subset of individuals with optimal curves (“on-channel”) during Detection also demonstrated optimal curves (“off-channel”) during Fine Discrimination, indicating that a subset of individuals can modulate tuning optimally for detection and discrimination. PMID:23678013

Ultrastructural particularities of the spermatozoon of the cestode Electrotaenia malopteruri (Fritsch, 1886) (Proteocephalidae: Gangesiinae), a parasite of Malapterurus electricus (Siluriformes: Malapteruridae) from the river Nile, Egypt.

PubMed

Brunanská, Magdaléna; Scholz, Tomás; Ibraheem, Mohammed Hassan

2004-06-01

The fine structure of the mature spermatozoon of the tapeworm Electrotaenia malopteruri (Fritsch, 1886), a member of a supposedly primitive group of proteocephalidean tapeworms (Proteocephalidae: Gangesiinae), was studied by transmission electron microscopy for the first time. The mature spermatozoon of E. malopteruri is filiform, tapers at both extremities, and contains two axonemes of 9+"1" trepaxonematan type. A helicoidal crested body (60-150 nm thick) is present at the anterior extremity of the gamete. The twisting cortical microtubules (CM) line the periphery of the spermatozoon continuously. The nucleus, a fine cord of moderately condensed chromatin, occupies the middle part (region III) of the spermatozoon. The slightly electron-dense cytoplasm contains electron-dense granules in regions II and III and becomes more electron-dense at the end of region IV. The anterior and posterior extremities of the spermatozoon contain a single axoneme. Two modes of disorganisation of the axoneme at the posterior end of the mature spermatozoa are described for the first time in cestodes. The present data also indicate that the sperm ultrastructure of E. malapteruri shows some characters typical for onchobothriid tetraphyllideans, but it resembles that of Cyclophyllidea in the arrangement of twisting of the CM.

Plasma vitrification of waste materials

DOEpatents

McLaughlin, David F.; Dighe, Shyam V.; Gass, William R.

1997-01-01

This invention provides a process wherein hazardous or radioactive wastes in the form of liquids, slurries, or finely divided solids are mixed with finely divided glassformers (silica, alumina, soda, etc.) and injected directly into the plume of a non-transferred arc plasma torch. The extremely high temperatures and heat transfer rates makes it possible to convert the waste-glassformer mixture into a fully vitrified molten glass product in a matter of milliseconds. The molten product may then be collected in a crucible for casting into final wasteform geometry, quenching in water, or further holding time to improve homogeneity and eliminate bubbles.

Plasma vitrification of waste materials

DOEpatents

McLaughlin, D.F.; Dighe, S.V.; Gass, W.R.

1997-06-10

This invention provides a process wherein hazardous or radioactive wastes in the form of liquids, slurries, or finely divided solids are mixed with finely divided glassformers (silica, alumina, soda, etc.) and injected directly into the plume of a non-transferred arc plasma torch. The extremely high temperatures and heat transfer rates makes it possible to convert the waste-glassformer mixture into a fully vitrified molten glass product in a matter of milliseconds. The molten product may then be collected in a crucible for casting into final wasteform geometry, quenching in water, or further holding time to improve homogeneity and eliminate bubbles. 4 figs.

Radiative characteristics of aerosol during extreme fire event over Siberia in summer 2012

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhuravleva, Tatiana B.; Kabanov, Dmitriy M.; Nasrtdinov, Ilmir M.; Russkova, Tatiana V.; Sakerin, Sergey M.; Smirnov, Alexander; Holben, Brent N.

2017-01-01

Microphysical and optical properties of aerosol were studied during a mega-fire event in summer 2012 over Siberia using ground-based measurements of spectral solar radiation at the AERONET site in Tomsk and satellite observations. The data were analysed using multi-year (2003-2013) measurements of aerosol characteristics under background conditions and for less intense fires, differing in burning biomass type, stage of fire, remoteness from observation site, etc. (ordinary smoke). In June-August 2012, the average aerosol optical depth (AOD, 500 nm) had been 0.95 ± 0.86, about a factor of 6 larger than background values (0.16 ± 0.08), and a factor of 2.5 larger than in ordinary smoke. The AOD values were extremely high on 24-28 July and reached 3-5. A comparison with satellite observations showed that ground-based measurements in the region of Tomsk not only reflect the local AOD features, but are also characteristic for the territory of Western Siberia as a whole. Single scattering albedo (SSA, 440 nm) in this period ranged from 0.91 to 0.99 with an average of ˜ 0.96 in the entire wavelength range of 440-1020 nm. The increase in absorptance of aerosol particles (SSA(440 nm) = 0.92) and decrease in SSA with wavelength observed in ordinary smoke agree with the data from multi-year observations in analogous situations in the boreal zone of USA and Canada. Volume aerosol size distribution in extreme and ordinary smoke had a bimodal character with significant prevalence of fine-mode particles, but in summer 2012 the mean median radius and the width of the fine-mode distribution somewhat increased. In contrast to data from multi-year observations, in summer 2012 an increase in the volume concentration and median radius of the coarse mode was observed with growing AOD. The calculations of the average radiative effects of smoke and background aerosol are presented. Compared to background conditions and ordinary smoke, under the extreme smoke conditions the cooling effect of aerosol considerably intensifies: direct radiative effects (DRE) at the bottom (BOA) and at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) are -13, -35, and -60 W m-2 and -5, -14, and -35 W m-2 respectively. The maximal values of DRE were observed on 27 July (AOD(500 nm) = 3.5), when DRE(BOA) reached -150 W m-2, while DRE(TOA) and DRE of the atmosphere were -75 W m-2. During the fire event in summer 2012 the direct radiative effect efficiency varied in range: at the BOA it was -80-40 W m-2, at the TOA it was -50-20 W m-2 and in the atmosphere it was -35-20 W m-2.

Geotextile reinforcement of low-bearing capacity soils: comparison of two design methods applicable to thawing soils

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-06-01

Thawing fine-grained soils are often saturated and have extremely low bearing capacity. Geosynthetics are used to reinforce unsurfaced roads on weak, saturated soils and therefore are good candidates for use in stabilization of thawing soils. To stab...

SCDC Spanish Curricula Units. Fine Arts, Unit 4, Grade 2, Supplements & Ditto Packet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spanish Curricula Development Center, Miami Beach, FL.

The supplement and ditto packet to the unit four fine arts strand for second graders contains visual materials to aid the teacher in carrying out the instructional and assessment activities of this strand. Seatwork for individual students is featured along with materials intended for class participation activities. Illustrations, provided to help…

A single pH fluorescent probe for biosensing and imaging of extreme acidity and extreme alkalinity.

PubMed

Chao, Jian-Bin; Wang, Hui-Juan; Zhang, Yong-Bin; Li, Zhi-Qing; Liu, Yu-Hong; Huo, Fang-Jun; Yin, Cai-Xia; Shi, Ya-Wei; Wang, Juan-Juan

2017-07-04

A simple tailor-made pH fluorescent probe 2-benzothiazole (N-ethylcarbazole-3-yl) hydrazone (Probe) is facilely synthesized by the condensation reaction of 2-hydrazinobenzothiazole with N-ethylcarbazole-3-formaldehyde, which is a useful fluorescent probe for monitoring extremely acidic and alkaline pH, quantitatively. The pH titrations indicate that Probe displays a remarkable emission enhancement with a pK a of 2.73 and responds linearly to minor pH fluctuations within the extremely acidic range of 2.21-3.30. Interestingly, Probe also exhibits strong pH-dependent characteristics with pK a 11.28 and linear response to extreme-alkalinity range of 10.41-12.43. In addition, Probe shows a large Stokes shift of 84 nm under extremely acidic and alkaline conditions, high selectivity, excellent sensitivity, good water-solubility and fine stability, all of which are favorable for intracellular pH imaging. The probe is further successfully applied to image extremely acidic and alkaline pH values fluctuations in E. coli cells. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Numerical modelling of hydro-morphological processes dominated by fine suspended sediment in a stormwater pond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guan, Mingfu; Ahilan, Sangaralingam; Yu, Dapeng; Peng, Yong; Wright, Nigel

2018-01-01

Fine sediment plays crucial and multiple roles in the hydrological, ecological and geomorphological functioning of river systems. This study employs a two-dimensional (2D) numerical model to track the hydro-morphological processes dominated by fine suspended sediment, including the prediction of sediment concentration in flow bodies, and erosion and deposition caused by sediment transport. The model is governed by 2D full shallow water equations with which an advection-diffusion equation for fine sediment is coupled. Bed erosion and sedimentation are updated by a bed deformation model based on local sediment entrainment and settling flux in flow bodies. The model is initially validated with the three laboratory-scale experimental events where suspended load plays a dominant role. Satisfactory simulation results confirm the model's capability in capturing hydro-morphodynamic processes dominated by fine suspended sediment at laboratory-scale. Applications to sedimentation in a stormwater pond are conducted to develop the process-based understanding of fine sediment dynamics over a variety of flow conditions. Urban flows with 5-year, 30-year and 100-year return period and the extreme flood event in 2012 are simulated. The modelled results deliver a step change in understanding fine sediment dynamics in stormwater ponds. The model is capable of quantitatively simulating and qualitatively assessing the performance of a stormwater pond in managing urban water quantity and quality.

Development of a stacked ensemble model for forecasting and analyzing daily average PM2.5 concentrations in Beijing, China.

PubMed

Zhai, Binxu; Chen, Jianguo

2018-04-18

A stacked ensemble model is developed for forecasting and analyzing the daily average concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) in Beijing, China. Special feature extraction procedures, including those of simplification, polynomial, transformation and combination, are conducted before modeling to identify potentially significant features based on an exploratory data analysis. Stability feature selection and tree-based feature selection methods are applied to select important variables and evaluate the degrees of feature importance. Single models including LASSO, Adaboost, XGBoost and multi-layer perceptron optimized by the genetic algorithm (GA-MLP) are established in the level 0 space and are then integrated by support vector regression (SVR) in the level 1 space via stacked generalization. A feature importance analysis reveals that nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) and carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations measured from the city of Zhangjiakou are taken as the most important elements of pollution factors for forecasting PM 2.5 concentrations. Local extreme wind speeds and maximal wind speeds are considered to extend the most effects of meteorological factors to the cross-regional transportation of contaminants. Pollutants found in the cities of Zhangjiakou and Chengde have a stronger impact on air quality in Beijing than other surrounding factors. Our model evaluation shows that the ensemble model generally performs better than a single nonlinear forecasting model when applied to new data with a coefficient of determination (R 2 ) of 0.90 and a root mean squared error (RMSE) of 23.69μg/m 3 . For single pollutant grade recognition, the proposed model performs better when applied to days characterized by good air quality than when applied to days registering high levels of pollution. The overall classification accuracy level is 73.93%, with most misclassifications made among adjacent categories. The results demonstrate the interpretability and generalizability of the stacked ensemble model. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of seabed mapping methods for fine-scale classification of extremely shallow benthic habitats - Application to the Venice Lagoon, Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Montereale Gavazzi, G.; Madricardo, F.; Janowski, L.; Kruss, A.; Blondel, P.; Sigovini, M.; Foglini, F.

2016-03-01

Recent technological developments of multibeam echosounder systems (MBES) allow mapping of benthic habitats with unprecedented detail. MBES can now be employed in extremely shallow waters, challenging data acquisition (as these instruments were often designed for deeper waters) and data interpretation (honed on datasets with resolution sometimes orders of magnitude lower). With extremely high-resolution bathymetry and co-located backscatter data, it is now possible to map the spatial distribution of fine scale benthic habitats, even identifying the acoustic signatures of single sponges. In this context, it is necessary to understand which of the commonly used segmentation methods is best suited to account for such level of detail. At the same time, new sampling protocols for precisely geo-referenced ground truth data need to be developed to validate the benthic environmental classification. This study focuses on a dataset collected in a shallow (2-10 m deep) tidal channel of the Lagoon of Venice, Italy. Using 0.05-m and 0.2-m raster grids, we compared a range of classifications, both pixel-based and object-based approaches, including manual, Maximum Likelihood Classifier, Jenks Optimization clustering, textural analysis and Object Based Image Analysis. Through a comprehensive and accurately geo-referenced ground truth dataset, we were able to identify five different classes of the substrate composition, including sponges, mixed submerged aquatic vegetation, mixed detritic bottom (fine and coarse) and unconsolidated bare sediment. We computed estimates of accuracy (namely Overall, User, Producer Accuracies and the Kappa statistic) by cross tabulating predicted and reference instances. Overall, pixel based segmentations produced the highest accuracies and the accuracy assessment is strongly dependent on the number of classes chosen for the thematic output. Tidal channels in the Venice Lagoon are extremely important in terms of habitats and sediment distribution, particularly within the context of the new tidal barrier being built. However, they had remained largely unexplored until now, because of the surveying challenges. The application of this remote sensing approach, combined with targeted sampling, opens a new perspective in the monitoring of benthic habitats in view of a knowledge-based management of natural resources in shallow coastal areas.

Small size transformer provides high power regulation with low ripple and maximum control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Manoli, R.; Ulrich, B. R.

1971-01-01

Single, variable, transformer/choke device does work of several. Technique reduces drawer assembly physical size and design and manufacturing cost. Device provides power, voltage current and impedance regulation while maintaining maximum control of linearity and ensuring extremely low ripple. Nulling is controlled to very fine degree.

Subsynoptic-scale features associated with extreme surface gusts in UK extratropical cyclone events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Earl, N.; Dorling, S.; Starks, M.; Finch, R.

2017-04-01

Numerous studies have addressed the mesoscale features within extratropical cyclones (ETCs) that are responsible for the most destructive winds, though few have utilized surface observation data, and most are based on case studies. By using a 39-station UK surface observation network, coupled with in-depth analysis of the causes of extreme gusts during the period 2008-2014, we show that larger-scale features (warm and cold conveyer belts) are most commonly associated with the top 1% of UK gusts but smaller-scale features generate the most extreme winds. The cold conveyor belt is far more destructive when joining the momentum of the ETC, rather than earlier in its trajectory, ahead of the approaching warm front. Sting jets and convective lines account for two thirds of severe surface gusts in the UK.

EVALUATION OF AN ANNUAL SIMULATION OF OZONE AND FINE PARTICULATE MATTER OVER THE CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES - WHICH TEMPORAL FEATURES ARE CAPTURED?

EPA Science Inventory

Motivated by growing concerns about the detrimental effects of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) on human health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently promulgated a National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for PM2.5. The PM2.5 standard includes a 24-hour li...

Vowel Imagery Decoding toward Silent Speech BCI Using Extreme Learning Machine with Electroencephalogram

PubMed Central

Kim, Jongin; Park, Hyeong-jun

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study is to classify EEG data on imagined speech in a single trial. We recorded EEG data while five subjects imagined different vowels, /a/, /e/, /i/, /o/, and /u/. We divided each single trial dataset into thirty segments and extracted features (mean, variance, standard deviation, and skewness) from all segments. To reduce the dimension of the feature vector, we applied a feature selection algorithm based on the sparse regression model. These features were classified using a support vector machine with a radial basis function kernel, an extreme learning machine, and two variants of an extreme learning machine with different kernels. Because each single trial consisted of thirty segments, our algorithm decided the label of the single trial by selecting the most frequent output among the outputs of the thirty segments. As a result, we observed that the extreme learning machine and its variants achieved better classification rates than the support vector machine with a radial basis function kernel and linear discrimination analysis. Thus, our results suggested that EEG responses to imagined speech could be successfully classified in a single trial using an extreme learning machine with a radial basis function and linear kernel. This study with classification of imagined speech might contribute to the development of silent speech BCI systems. PMID:28097128

Usage of Crushed Concrete Fines in Decorative Concrete

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pilipenko, Anton; Bazhenova, Sofia

2017-10-01

The article is devoted to the questions of usage of crushed concrete fines from concrete scrap for the production of high-quality decorative composite materials based on mixed binder. The main problem in the application of crushed concrete in the manufacture of decorative concrete products is extremely low decorative properties of crushed concrete fines itself, as well as concrete products based on them. However, crushed concrete fines could have a positive impact on the structure of the concrete matrix and could improve the environmental and economic characteristics of the concrete products. Dust fraction of crushed concrete fines contains non-hydrated cement grains, which can be opened in screening process due to the low strength of the contact zone between the hydrated and non-hydrated cement. In addition, the screening process could increase activity of the crushed concrete fines, so it can be used as a fine aggregate and filler for concrete mixes. Previous studies have shown that the effect of the usage of the crushed concrete fines is small and does not allow to obtain concrete products with high strength. However, it is possible to improve the efficiency of the crushed concrete fines as a filler due to the complex of measures prior to mixing. Such measures may include a preliminary mechanochemical activation of the binder (cement binder, iron oxide pigment, silica fume and crushed concrete fines), as well as the usage of polycarboxylate superplasticizers. The development of specific surface area of activated crushed concrete fines ensures strong adhesion between grains of binder and filler during the formation of cement stone matrix. The particle size distribution of the crushed concrete fines could achieve the densest structure of cement stone matrix and improve its resistance to environmental effects. The authors examined the mechanisms of structure of concrete products with crushed concrete fines as a filler. The results of studies of the properties of the crushed concrete fines were provided. It is shown that the admixture of the crushed concrete fines has little effect on the colour characteristics of the decorative concrete products. The preferred options to improve the surfaces of decorative concrete are also proposed.

Controls on fluvial metamorphosis during global warming at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary (56 Ma) in Spain: extreme droughts, extreme floods or both?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castelltort, Sebastien; Chen, Chen; Guerit, Laure; Foreman, Brady; Paola, Chris; Adatte, Thierry

2017-04-01

How does global warming change the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events? The response to this question is partly preserved in the geological record. 56 Ma ago, global temperatures increased during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), leading to a major biotic turnover, but how this event affected the nature of extreme events remains unknown. On several continents, fluvial systems with sinuous channels within fine-grained floodplains suddenly transformed at the P-E boundary into apparently coarser-grained braid plains with frequent lateral migrations, washing their muddy floodplains to the seas. This landscape transformation has been related to aridification and intensification of precipitation allowing transport of coarser material as a result of P-E global warming, with important implications for predicting the consequences of current global change. Here we test this hypothesis by quantifying the magnitude of grain size change and flow depth at a representative P-E locality in Northern Spain. We find that the size of pebbles in transport and flow depth remained similar to, or even smaller than, pre-PETM conditions. This suggests that, if more seasonal and extreme precipitation occurred, they are not necessarily borne out in the predicted deeper flow depths and coarser grain sizes, but rather trigger a shift to multiple active channels. However, an alternative or complementary explanation may rest in pollen data found in coeval marine records and which document a dramatic vegetation shift from permanent conifer forests prior to the crisis into periodic vegetation in brief periods of rain during the hyperthermal episode. Such change induced by long periods of intense droughts, could have enhanced erodibility of channel banks by decreasing root-controlled cohesion of fine-grained floodplains and interfluves, promoting their lateral mobility and the observed fluvial metamorphosis. Thus, although water is regarded as the main agent sculpting fluvial landscapes, the absence of it during extreme droughts rather than its presence during extreme precipitation events, may be a dominant control on fluvial metamorphosis and landscape evolution.

Nano-textured high sensitivity ion sensitive field effect transistors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hajmirzaheydarali, M.; Sadeghipari, M.; Akbari, M.

2016-02-07

Nano-textured gate engineered ion sensitive field effect transistors (ISFETs), suitable for high sensitivity pH sensors, have been realized. Utilizing a mask-less deep reactive ion etching results in ultra-fine poly-Si features on the gate of ISFET devices where spacing of the order of 10 nm and less is achieved. Incorporation of these nano-sized features on the gate is responsible for high sensitivities up to 400 mV/pH in contrast to conventional planar structures. The fabrication process for this transistor is inexpensive, and it is fully compatible with standard complementary metal oxide semiconductor fabrication procedure. A theoretical modeling has also been presented to predict themore » extension of the diffuse layer into the electrolyte solution for highly featured structures and to correlate this extension with the high sensitivity of the device. The observed ultra-fine features by means of scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy tools corroborate the theoretical prediction.« less

Spoken language identification based on the enhanced self-adjusting extreme learning machine approach.

PubMed

Albadr, Musatafa Abbas Abbood; Tiun, Sabrina; Al-Dhief, Fahad Taha; Sammour, Mahmoud A M

2018-01-01

Spoken Language Identification (LID) is the process of determining and classifying natural language from a given content and dataset. Typically, data must be processed to extract useful features to perform LID. The extracting features for LID, based on literature, is a mature process where the standard features for LID have already been developed using Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC), Shifted Delta Cepstral (SDC), the Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) and ending with the i-vector based framework. However, the process of learning based on extract features remains to be improved (i.e. optimised) to capture all embedded knowledge on the extracted features. The Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) is an effective learning model used to perform classification and regression analysis and is extremely useful to train a single hidden layer neural network. Nevertheless, the learning process of this model is not entirely effective (i.e. optimised) due to the random selection of weights within the input hidden layer. In this study, the ELM is selected as a learning model for LID based on standard feature extraction. One of the optimisation approaches of ELM, the Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine (SA-ELM) is selected as the benchmark and improved by altering the selection phase of the optimisation process. The selection process is performed incorporating both the Split-Ratio and K-Tournament methods, the improved SA-ELM is named Enhanced Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine (ESA-ELM). The results are generated based on LID with the datasets created from eight different languages. The results of the study showed excellent superiority relating to the performance of the Enhanced Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine LID (ESA-ELM LID) compared with the SA-ELM LID, with ESA-ELM LID achieving an accuracy of 96.25%, as compared to the accuracy of SA-ELM LID of only 95.00%.

Spoken language identification based on the enhanced self-adjusting extreme learning machine approach

PubMed Central

Tiun, Sabrina; AL-Dhief, Fahad Taha; Sammour, Mahmoud A. M.

2018-01-01

Spoken Language Identification (LID) is the process of determining and classifying natural language from a given content and dataset. Typically, data must be processed to extract useful features to perform LID. The extracting features for LID, based on literature, is a mature process where the standard features for LID have already been developed using Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC), Shifted Delta Cepstral (SDC), the Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) and ending with the i-vector based framework. However, the process of learning based on extract features remains to be improved (i.e. optimised) to capture all embedded knowledge on the extracted features. The Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) is an effective learning model used to perform classification and regression analysis and is extremely useful to train a single hidden layer neural network. Nevertheless, the learning process of this model is not entirely effective (i.e. optimised) due to the random selection of weights within the input hidden layer. In this study, the ELM is selected as a learning model for LID based on standard feature extraction. One of the optimisation approaches of ELM, the Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine (SA-ELM) is selected as the benchmark and improved by altering the selection phase of the optimisation process. The selection process is performed incorporating both the Split-Ratio and K-Tournament methods, the improved SA-ELM is named Enhanced Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine (ESA-ELM). The results are generated based on LID with the datasets created from eight different languages. The results of the study showed excellent superiority relating to the performance of the Enhanced Self-Adjusting Extreme Learning Machine LID (ESA-ELM LID) compared with the SA-ELM LID, with ESA-ELM LID achieving an accuracy of 96.25%, as compared to the accuracy of SA-ELM LID of only 95.00%. PMID:29672546

Extreme events following bifurcation to spatiotemporal chaos in a spatially extended microcavity laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coulibaly, S.; Clerc, M. G.; Selmi, F.; Barbay, S.

2017-02-01

The occurrence of extreme events in a spatially extended microcavity laser has been recently reported [Selmi et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 013901 (2016), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.013901] to be correlated to emergence of spatiotemporal chaos. In this dissipative system, the role of spatial coupling through diffraction is essential to observe the onset of spatiotemporal complexity. We investigate further the formation mechanism of extreme events by comparing the statistical and dynamical analyses. Experimental measurements together with numerical simulations allow us to assign the quasiperiodicity mechanism as the route to spatiotemporal chaos in this system. Moreover, by investigating the fine structure of the maximum Lyapunov exponent, of the Lyapunov spectrum, and of the Kaplan-Yorke dimension of the chaotic attractor, we are able to deduce that intermittency plays a key role in the proportion of extreme events measured. We assign the observed mechanism of generation of extreme events to quasiperiodic extended spatiotemporal intermittency.

How extreme is extreme hourly precipitation?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papalexiou, Simon Michael; Dialynas, Yannis G.; Pappas, Christoforos

2016-04-01

The importance of accurate representation of precipitation at fine time scales (e.g., hourly), directly associated with flash flood events, is crucial in hydrological design and prediction. The upper part of a probability distribution, known as the distribution tail, determines the behavior of extreme events. In general, and loosely speaking, tails can be categorized in two families: the subexponential and the hyperexponential family, with the first generating more intense and more frequent extremes compared to the latter. In past studies, the focus has been mainly on daily precipitation, with the Gamma distribution being the most popular model. Here, we investigate the behaviour of tails of hourly precipitation by comparing the upper part of empirical distributions of thousands of records with three general types of tails corresponding to the Pareto, Lognormal, and Weibull distributions. Specifically, we use thousands of hourly rainfall records from all over the USA. The analysis indicates that heavier-tailed distributions describe better the observed hourly rainfall extremes in comparison to lighter tails. Traditional representations of the marginal distribution of hourly rainfall may significantly deviate from observed behaviours of extremes, with direct implications on hydroclimatic variables modelling and engineering design.

Extremely Selective Attention: Eye-Tracking Studies of the Dynamic Allocation of Attention to Stimulus Features in Categorization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blair, Mark R.; Watson, Marcus R.; Walshe, R. Calen; Maj, Fillip

2009-01-01

Humans have an extremely flexible ability to categorize regularities in their environment, in part because of attentional systems that allow them to focus on important perceptual information. In formal theories of categorization, attention is typically modeled with weights that selectively bias the processing of stimulus features. These theories…

Wind Carved Rock

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-19

The distinctively fluted surface and elongated hills in this image in Medusae Fossae are caused by wind erosion of a soft fine-grained rock. Called yardangs, these features are aligned with the prevailing wind direction. This wind direction would have dominated for a very long time to carve these large-scale features into the exposed rock we see today. Yardangs not only reveal the strength and direction of historic winds, but also reveal something of the host rock itself. Close inspection by HiRISE shows an absence of boulders or rubble, especially along steep yardang cliffs and buttresses. The absence of rubble and the scale of the yardangs tells us that the host rock consists only of weakly cemented fine granules in tens of meters or more thick deposits. Such deposits could have come from extended settling of volcanic ash, atmospheric dust, or accumulations of wind deposited fine sands. After a time these deposits became cemented and cohesive, illustrated by the high standing relief and exposed cliffs. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21111

Ultrastructural characters of the spermatozoon of the cestode Corallobothrium solidum Fritsch, 1886 (Cestoda: Proteocephalidea), a parasite of the electric catfish Malapterurus electricus.

PubMed

Brunanská, Magdaléna; Scholz, Tomás; Ibraheem, Mohammed Hassan

2004-12-01

The fine structure of the mature spermatozoon of the corallobothriine tapeworm Corallobothrium solidum Fritsch, 1886 (Cestoda: Proteocephalidea) from the electric catfish Malapterurus electricus from the Nile River in Egypt was studied by transmission electron microscopy for the first time. The filiform spermatozoon of C. solidum contains two axonemes of unequal length and a typical 9 + "1" trepaxonematan pattern. A single helicoidal crested body (30-200 nm thick) is localized at the anterior extremity of the gamete. The cortical microtubules line the periphery of the cell, largely parallel to the long axis of the spermatozoon and exhibiting signs of twisting at the beginning of region II. The nucleus, in the form of an electron-dense (largely in gametes of testes) and/or fibrous cord (largely in gametes from male reproductive ducts and seminal vesicle), coils in a spiral through the middle part (region III) of the spermatozoon. The cytoplasm contains electron-dense granules in regions II, III and partly in region IV. The cytoplasm of some spermatozoa exhibits an apparently higher electron-density at the end of the nucleated region (III), and continuously toward the middle part of region IV. The anterior and posterior extremities of the spermatozoa have a single axoneme. The ultrastructural features of the mature spermatozoon of C. solidum mostly coincide with those of the spermatozoon of other proteocephalideans, especially the gangesiine Electrotaenia malopteruri parasitizing the same host.

Adapting to the unpredictable: reproductive biology of vertebrates in the Australian wet-dry tropics.

PubMed

Shine, Richard; Brown, Gregory P

2008-01-27

In the wet-dry tropics of northern Australia, temperatures are high and stable year-round but monsoonal rainfall is highly seasonal and variable both annually and spatially. Many features of reproduction in vertebrates of this region may be adaptations to dealing with this unpredictable variation in precipitation, notably by (i) using direct proximate (rainfall-affected) cues to synchronize the timing and extent of breeding with rainfall events, (ii) placing the eggs or offspring in conditions where they will be buffered from rainfall extremes, and (iii) evolving developmental plasticity, such that the timing and trajectory of embryonic differentiation flexibly respond to local conditions. For example, organisms as diverse as snakes (Liasis fuscus, Acrochordus arafurae), crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus), birds (Anseranas semipalmata) and wallabies (Macropus agilis) show extreme annual variation in reproductive rates, linked to stochastic variation in wet season rainfall. The seasonal timing of initiation and cessation of breeding in snakes (Tropidonophis mairii) and rats (Rattus colletti) also varies among years, depending upon precipitation. An alternative adaptive route is to buffer the effects of rainfall variability on offspring by parental care (including viviparity) or by judicious selection of nest sites in oviparous taxa without parental care. A third type of adaptive response involves flexible embryonic responses (including embryonic diapause, facultative hatching and temperature-dependent sex determination) to incubation conditions, as seen in squamates, crocodilians and turtles. Such flexibility fine-tunes developmental rates and trajectories to conditions--especially, rainfall patterns--that are not predictable at the time of oviposition.

Fine structure of the pecten oculi of the barred owl (Strix varia).

PubMed

Smith, B J; Smith, S A; Braekevelt, C R

1996-01-01

The pecten oculi of the barred owl (Strix varia) has been examined by light and transmission electron microscopy. The pecten in this species is of the pleated type and is small in comparison to the size of the ocular globe. The pecten consists of 8-10 accordion-like folds that are linked apically by a pigmented tissue bridge. Each fold contains numerous capillaries, larger supply and drainage vessels, and abundant pleomorphic melanocytes. Most of these capillaries are extremely specialized vessels that possess plentiful microfolds on both the luminal and abluminal surfaces. Some capillaries however display only a few microfolds. The endothelial cell bodies are extremely attenuated, with most organelles located near the nucleus. All capillaries are surrounded by a very thick fibrillar basal lamina, which is thought to provide structural support to these small vessels. Pericytes are commonly found within these thickened basal laminae. Numerous melanocytes are also present, with processes that form an incomplete sheath around the capillaries. These processes are also presumed to provide structural support for the capillaries. As in other avian species, the morphology of the barred owl pecten is indicative of extensive involvement in substance transport. When compared to the pecten of more visually-oriented species, this pecten is smaller, has fewer folds, and displays a reduced number of microfolds within the capillaries. In these and other features, the barred owl pecten is similar to the pecten of the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus).

78 FR 5351 - Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Proposed Designation of Critical Habitat for the...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-25

... source of algae production and an aquatic insect food base consisting of caddisflies, mayflies, midges... isolation are extremely susceptible to extinction from both random and nonrandom catastrophic natural or... cover from predators; and (2) An abundant aquatic insect food base consisting of fine particulate...

Desert and desertification in Iran

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahrami, M.

2009-04-01

One of the greatest environmental concerns in Iran as in other arid and semiarid countries is the transformation of once productive, or marginally productive, land to deteriorated land and soil unable to support plants and animals. Because the land becomes barren and dry, the process is described as desertification, which occurs as a sequence of events. The area of deserts in Iran is about 340,000 Km2 (less than one fifth of its total area), of which 100,000 Km2 is being used for some cultivation, 120,000 Km2 is subjected to moving sands about 40 % of which is active sand dunes. Most of features and processes usual in world famous deserts are also observed in Iran: low precipitation, high evaporation, poor or lack of vegetation, saline and alkaline soils, low population and small and sparse oases. The deserts of Iran are generally classified in the subtropical, warm, arid and semiarid group, but the effect and presence of some geographical and geoclimatical factors such as height, vicinity to Indian Ocean and so on do some changes in climatic conditions and geographical features causing some local and regional differences in them. Geographically, two groups of deserts have been known in Iran: (1) Coastal deserts which, like a ribbon with variable width, stretch from extreme southeast to extreme southwest, at the north parts of Oman Sea and Persian Gulf. One important feature of these deserts is relatively high humidity which differentiates them from other deserts. This causes an increase in vegetation coverage and hence a decrease in eolian erosion and also a dominance of chemical weathering to that of physical. (2) internal deserts, which rest in central, eastern and southeastern plateau of the country and in independent and semi dependent depressions. This situation, which is due to the surrounding high mountains, blocks humidity entry and causes the aridity of these deserts. Wind as a dominant process in the area causes deflated features such as Reg (desert pavement), Kalut (Yardang), Hoodoo and wind deposited features such as different kinds of sand dunes (Seif, Nebka, Rebdous, Barkhan, Ghourd, Erg) and Loess, most of which exhibit beautiful landscapes suitable for ecotourism and scientific tours. Salt deserts (Kavir or Playas), which rest in the lowest parts of internal depressions, are the most current features in Iran deserts. The most extensive and specific salt deserts are in the course of floods or at the end of them, which consist of fine grained sediments in the lowest parts of the depressions. Many factors have been participated in the formation of salt deserts in Iran, the most important of which, are morphotectonical (such as folding and faulting due to the last epirogenic and orogenic movements), climatical and hydrological (occurred in Quaternary), geological and pedological (such as the presence of Neogene evaporitic formations).

Development of a Wafer Positioning System for the Sandia Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wronosky, John B.; Smith, Tony G.; Darnold, Joel R.

1996-01-01

A wafer positioning system was recently developed by Sandia National Laboratories for an Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUVL) tool. The system, which utilizes a magnetically levitated fine stage to provide ultra-precise positioning in all six degrees of freedom, incorporates technological improvements resulting from four years of prototype development. This paper describes the design, implementation, and functional capability of the system. Specifics regarding control system electronics, including software and control algorithm structure, as well as performance design goals and test results are presented. Potential system enhancements, some of which are in process, are also discussed.

A new hypothesis and exploratory model for the formation of large-scale inner-shelf sediment sorting and ``rippled scour depressions''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murray, A. Brad; Thieler, E. Robert

2004-02-01

Recent observations of inner continental shelves in many regions show numerous collections of relatively coarse sediment, which extend kilometers in the cross-shore direction and are on the order of 100 m wide. These "rippled scour depressions" have been interpreted to indicate concentrated cross-shelf currents. However, recent observations strongly suggest that they are associated with sediment transport along-shore rather than cross-shore. A new hypothesis for the origin of these features involves the large wave-generated ripples that form in the coarse material. Wave motions interacting with these large roughness elements generate near-bed turbulence that is greatly enhanced relative to that in other areas. This enhances entrainment and inhibits settling of fine material in an area dominated by coarse sediment. The fine sediment is then carried by mean currents past the coarse accumulations, and deposited where the bed is finer. We hypothesize that these interactions constitute a feedback tending to produce accumulations of fine material separated by self-perpetuating patches of coarse sediments. As with many types of self-organized bedforms, small features would interact as they migrate, leading to a better-organized, larger-scale pattern. As an initial test of this hypothesis, we use a numerical model treating the transport of coarse and fine sediment fractions, treated as functions of the local bed composition—a proxy for the presence of large roughness elements in coarse areas. Large-scale sorted patterns exhibiting the main characteristics of the natural features result robustly in the model, indicating that this new hypothesis offers a plausible explanation for the phenomena.

Effect of Powder Size and Shape on the SLS Processability and Mechanical Properties of a TPU Elastomer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dadbakhsh, Sasan; Verbelen, Leander; Vandeputte, Tom; Strobbe, Dieter; Van Puyvelde, Peter; Kruth, Jean-Pierre

This work investigates the influence of powder size/shape on selective laser sintering (SLS) of a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) elastomer. It examines a TPU powder which had been cryogenically milled in two different sizes; coarse powder (D50∼200μm) with rough surfaces in comparison with a fine powder (D50∼63μm) with extremely fine flow additives. It is found that the coarse powder coalesces at lower temperatures and excessively smokes during the SLS processing. In comparison, the fine powder with flow additives is better processable at significantly higher powder bed temperatures, allowing a lower optimum laser energy input which minimizes smoking and degradation of the polymer. In terms of mechanical properties, good coalescence of both powders lead to parts with acceptable shear-punch strengths compared to injection molded parts. However, porosity and degradation from the optimum SLS parameters of the coarse powder drastically reduce the tensile properties to about one-third of the parts made from the fine powders as well as those made by injection molding (IM).

Gas-evaporation in low-gravity field (cogelation mechanism of metal vapors) (M-14)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wada, N.

1993-01-01

When metal and alloy compounds are heated and vaporized in a rare gas such as helium, argon, or xenon, the vaporized substances diffused in the rare gas are supersaturated resulting in a smoke of fine particles of the material congealing as snow or fog. The gas vaporizing method is a fine particle generation method. Though the method has a variety of applications, the material vapor flow is disturbed by gravitational convection on Earth. The inability to elucidate the fine particle generation mechanism results in an obstruction to improving the method to mass production levels. As no convection occurs in microgravity in space, the fine particle generation mechanism influenced only by diffusion can be investigated. Investigators expect that excellent particles with homogeneous diameter distribution can be obtained. Experiment data and facts will assist in improving efficiency, quality, and scale or production processes including element processes such as vaporization, diffusion, and condensation. The objective of this experiment is to obtain important information related to the mechanism of particle formation in the gas atmosphere (smoke particles) and the production of submicron powders of extremely uniform size.

Breast myofibroblastoma in a young woman: a case report.

PubMed

D'Ambrosio, Giancarlo; De Laurentis, Francesca; Scoglio, Daniele; Balla, Andrea; Quaresima, Silvia; Mattei, Fabrizio; Lezoche, Emanuele

2013-09-03

Myofibroblastoma (MFB) is an uncommon benign mesenchymal tumor that may arise in several organs and tissue. Although most of reported cases were located in the breast, it is extremely rare, representing less than 1% of breast tumor. MFB has predominantly seen in elderly men, but some cases have been described in menopausal women. This lesion is a stromal tumor which has many morphologic variants including cellular, collagenized, epithelioid, palisaded, lipomatous, hemangiopericytoma-like, and infiltrant features. Even if its incidence has recently increased due to the mammary screening, only few cases have been reported in Literature and even less in young women. Physical examination discloses a solitary, unilateral, painless, freely movable, usual firm in consistency, non-tender nodule. Imaging investigations usually are not specific to establish the right diagnosis. Furthermore, findings from Fine-Needle Aspiration (FNA) may be confusing and nonspecific, making diagnosis of MFB possible only after surgical operation. Not evidence of malignant transformation, recurrence or distant metastasis after a follow-up period of 15 years have been reported in Literature when resection margins are free. Hereby the authors describe a rare case of breast MFB in a young woman.

Constructing fine-granularity functional brain network atlases via deep convolutional autoencoder.

PubMed

Zhao, Yu; Dong, Qinglin; Chen, Hanbo; Iraji, Armin; Li, Yujie; Makkie, Milad; Kou, Zhifeng; Liu, Tianming

2017-12-01

State-of-the-art functional brain network reconstruction methods such as independent component analysis (ICA) or sparse coding of whole-brain fMRI data can effectively infer many thousands of volumetric brain network maps from a large number of human brains. However, due to the variability of individual brain networks and the large scale of such networks needed for statistically meaningful group-level analysis, it is still a challenging and open problem to derive group-wise common networks as network atlases. Inspired by the superior spatial pattern description ability of the deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs), a novel deep 3D convolutional autoencoder (CAE) network is designed here to extract spatial brain network features effectively, based on which an Apache Spark enabled computational framework is developed for fast clustering of larger number of network maps into fine-granularity atlases. To evaluate this framework, 10 resting state networks (RSNs) were manually labeled from the sparsely decomposed networks of Human Connectome Project (HCP) fMRI data and 5275 network training samples were obtained, in total. Then the deep CAE models are trained by these functional networks' spatial maps, and the learned features are used to refine the original 10 RSNs into 17 network atlases that possess fine-granularity functional network patterns. Interestingly, it turned out that some manually mislabeled outliers in training networks can be corrected by the deep CAE derived features. More importantly, fine granularities of networks can be identified and they reveal unique network patterns specific to different brain task states. By further applying this method to a dataset of mild traumatic brain injury study, it shows that the technique can effectively identify abnormal small networks in brain injury patients in comparison with controls. In general, our work presents a promising deep learning and big data analysis solution for modeling functional connectomes, with fine granularities, based on fMRI data. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

First trimester diagnosis of parapagus diprosopus dibrachius dipus twins with cranirachischisis totalis by three-dimensional ultrasound.

PubMed

Ülker, Kahraman; Akyer, Şahika P; Temur, İsmail; Tan, Temel; Karaca, Mehmet; Adıgüzel, Esat; Gül, Abdülaziz

2012-02-01

Parapagus (laterally fused), diprosopus (two faces), dibrachius (two upper extremities), dipus (two lower extremities) conjoined twinning is extremely rare. The coexistence of anencephaly with a contiguous spinal defect (craniorachischisis totalis) makes the present case one of the rarest of the published cases. In our case, it was difficult to make the final diagnosis by two-dimensional abdominal and vaginal ultrasound. Three-dimensional ultrasound was helpful for final diagnosis and post-abortal examination confirmed the prenatal ultrasound diagnosis. The heart, diaphragm, liver and perineum were all united. Fine dissection of the heart showed four vessels arising from the ventricles and a membranous type ventricular septal defect. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research © 2011 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Basis for paleoenvironmental interpretation of magnetic properties of sediment from Upper Klamath Lake (Oregon): Effects of weathering and mineralogical sorting

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rosenbaum, J.G.; Reynolds, R.L.

2004-01-01

Studies of magnetic properties enable reconstruction of environmental conditions that affected magnetic minerals incorporated in sediments from Upper Klamath Lake. Analyses of stream sediment samples from throughout the catchment of Upper Klamath Lake show that alteration of Fe-oxide minerals during subaerial chemical weathering of basic volcanic rocks has significantly changed magnetic properties of surficial deposits. Titanomagnetite, which is abundant both as phenocrysts and as microcrystals in fresh volcanic rocks, is progressively destroyed during weathering. Because fine-grained magnetite is readily altered due to large surface-to-volume ratios, weathering causes an increase in average magnetic grain size as well as reduction in the quantity of titanomagnetite both absolutely and relative to hematite. Hydrodynamic mineralogical sorting also produces differences in magnetic properties among rock and mineral grains of differing sizes. Importantly, removal of coarse silicate and Fe-oxide grains by sorting concentrated extremely fine-grained magnetite in the resulting sediment. The effects of weathering and sorting of minerals cannot be completely separated. These processes combine to produce the magnetic properties of a non-glacial lithic component of Upper Klamath Lake sediments, which is characterized by relatively low magnetite content and coarse magnetic grain size. Hydrodynamic sorting alone causes significant differences between the magnetic properties of glacial flour in lake sediments and of fresh volcanic rocks in the catchment. In comparison to source volcanic rocks, glacial flour in the lake sediment is highly enriched in extremely fine-grained magnetite.

An ethanol-based fixation method for anatomical and micro-morphological characterization of leaves of various tree species.

PubMed

Chieco, C; Rotondi, A; Morrone, L; Rapparini, F; Baraldi, R

2013-02-01

The use of formalin constitutes serious health hazards for laboratory workers. We investigated the suitability and performance of the ethanol-based fixative, FineFIX, as a substitute for formalin for anatomical and cellular structure investigations of leaves by light microscopy and for leaf surface and ultrastructural analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). We compared the anatomical features of leaf materials prepared using conventional formalin fixation with the FineFIX. Leaves were collected from ornamental tree species commonly used in urban areas. FineFIX was also compared with glutaraldehyde fixation and air drying normally used for scanning electron microscopy to develop a new method for evaluating leaf morphology and microstructure in three ornamental tree species. The cytological features of the samples processed for histological analysis were well preserved by both fixatives as demonstrated by the absence of nuclear swelling or shrinkage, cell wall detachment or tissue flaking, and good presentation of cytoplasmic vacuolization. In addition, good preservation of surface details and the absence of shrinkage artefacts confirmed the efficacy of FineFIX fixation for SEM analysis. Cuticular wax was preserved only in air dried samples. Samples treated with chemical substances during the fixation and dehydration phases showed various alterations of the wax structures. In some air dried samples a loss of turgidity of the cells was observed that caused general wrinkling of the epidermal surfaces. Commercial FineFIX is an adequate substitute for formalin in histology and it can be applied successfully also for SEM investigation, while reducing the health risks of glutaraldehyde or other toxic fixatives. To investigate the potential for plants to absorb and capture particulates in air, which requires preservation of the natural morphology of trichomes and epicuticular waxes, a combination of FineFIX fixation and air drying is recommended.

Representation of complex vocalizations in the Lusitanian toadfish auditory system: evidence of fine temporal, frequency and amplitude discrimination

PubMed Central

Vasconcelos, Raquel O.; Fonseca, Paulo J.; Amorim, M. Clara P.; Ladich, Friedrich

2011-01-01

Many fishes rely on their auditory skills to interpret crucial information about predators and prey, and to communicate intraspecifically. Few studies, however, have examined how complex natural sounds are perceived in fishes. We investigated the representation of conspecific mating and agonistic calls in the auditory system of the Lusitanian toadfish Halobatrachus didactylus, and analysed auditory responses to heterospecific signals from ecologically relevant species: a sympatric vocal fish (meagre Argyrosomus regius) and a potential predator (dolphin Tursiops truncatus). Using auditory evoked potential (AEP) recordings, we showed that both sexes can resolve fine features of conspecific calls. The toadfish auditory system was most sensitive to frequencies well represented in the conspecific vocalizations (namely the mating boatwhistle), and revealed a fine representation of duration and pulsed structure of agonistic and mating calls. Stimuli and corresponding AEP amplitudes were highly correlated, indicating an accurate encoding of amplitude modulation. Moreover, Lusitanian toadfish were able to detect T. truncatus foraging sounds and A. regius calls, although at higher amplitudes. We provide strong evidence that the auditory system of a vocal fish, lacking accessory hearing structures, is capable of resolving fine features of complex vocalizations that are probably important for intraspecific communication and other relevant stimuli from the auditory scene. PMID:20861044

High time-resolved elemental components in fine and coarse particles in the Pearl River Delta region of Southern China: Dynamic variations and effects of meteorology.

PubMed

Zhou, Shengzhen; Davy, Perry K; Wang, Xuemei; Cohen, Jason Blake; Liang, Jiaquan; Huang, Minjuan; Fan, Qi; Chen, Weihua; Chang, Ming; Ancelet, Travis; Trompetter, William J

2016-12-01

Hourly-resolved PM 2.5 and PM 10-2.5 samples were collected in the industrial city Foshan in the Pearl River Delta region, China. The samples were subsequently analyzed for elemental components and black carbon (BC). A key purpose of the study was to understand the composition of particulate matter (PM) at high-time resolution in a polluted urban atmosphere to identify key components contributing to extreme PM concentration events and examine the diurnal chemical concentration patterns for air quality management purposes. It was found that BC and S concentrations dominated in the fine mode, while elements with mostly crustal and oceanic origins such as Si, Ca, Al and Cl were found in the coarse size fraction. Most of the elements showed strong diurnal variations. S did not show clear diurnal variations, suggesting regional rather than local origin. Based on empirical orthogonal functions (EOF) method, 3 forcing factors were identified contributing to the extreme events of PM 2.5 and selected elements, i.e., urban direct emissions, wet deposition and a combination of coarse mode sources. Conditional probability functions (CPF) were performed using wind profiles and elemental concentrations. The CPF results showed that BC and elemental Cl, K, Fe, Cu and Zn in the fine mode were mostly from the northwest, indicating that industrial emissions and combustion were the main sources. For elements in the coarse mode, Si, Al, K, Ca, Fe and Ti showed similar patterns, suggesting same sources such as local soil dust/construction activities. Coarse elemental Cl was mostly from the south and southeast, implying the influence of marine aerosol sources. For other trace elements, we found vanadium (V) in fine PM was mainly from the sources located to the southeast of the measuring site. Combined with CPF results of S and V in fine PM, we concluded shipping emissions were likely an important elemental emission source. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Geotechnical and Surface Wave Investigation of Liquefaction and Strong Motion Instrumentation sites of the Denali Fault, Mw 7.9, Earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kayen, R.; Thompson, E.; Minasian, D.; Collins, B.; Moss, R.; Sitar, N.; Carver, G.

2003-12-01

Following the Mw 7.9 earthquake on the Denali and Totschunda faults on 3 November 2002, we conducted two investigations to map the regional extent and severity of liquefaction ground failures and assess the geotechnical properties of these sites, as well as profile the soil properties beneath three seismometers located at Alyeska Pump Stations 9, 10, and 11. The most noteworthy observations are that liquefaction damage was focused towards the eastern end of the rupture area. For example, liquefaction features in the river bars of the Tanana River, north of the fault-break, are sparsely located from Fairbanks to Delta, but are pervasive throughout the eastern area of the break to Northway Junction, the eastern limit of our survey. Likewise, for the four glacier-proximal rivers draining toward the north, little or no liquefaction was observed on the western Delta and Johnson Rivers, whereas the eastern Robertson River and non-glacial Tok River, and especially the Nabesna River, had observable-to-abundant fissures and sand vents. Several rivers systems were studied in detail. The Nabesna River emerges from its glacier, and drains and fines northward as it crosses the fault zone resulting in an asymmetrical liquefaction pattern. South of the fault, falling liquefaction resistance of soil (fining from sandy gravel to gravely sand) and rising loads from ground motions (approaching the fault) abruptly intersect such that there is a well defined, narrow, soil transition from undisturbed-to-fully liquefied approximately 5 kilometers from the fault. North of the fault, both liquefaction resistance (continued fining) and ground motions fall in tandem, leaving a much broader zone of liquefaction. The Delta River liquefaction occurrence is more complex, where side-entering glacial rivers form non-liquefiable gravel fans and alter the composition and compactness of the main-stem deposits. Immediately upstream of the gravelly Canwell glacier tributary, and immediately at the fault crossing, liquefaction features are abundant. To characterize soil properties, we used a portable continuous sine wave-spectral analysis of surface waves (CSS-SASW) apparatus to profile the shear wave velocity of the ground, and an auger to profile the corresponding texture of the river deposits. We occupied 25 liquefaction evaluation test sites along with the three Alyeska seismometer sites. On the Nabesna, Delta and other rivers, we only find liquefaction features in soil deposits where normalized shear wave velocities fall below 225 m/s. Severity of fissures and lateral spreads dramatically increase in soils as the velocities fall, especially below 170 m/s. In some cases, the most pronounced ground failures are far from the fault zone (60-100 km) in extremely loose, low velocity fine sands. Geotechnical testing performed on field samples revealed that liquefied soils ranged from well graded sandy gravels in close proximity to the fault (< 5km) to silty sands and low plasticity silts at greater distances. At the Alyeska pump station seismometer sites, we are able to invert profiles of shear wave velocity to depths of 140-200 meters. The averaged NEHRP (30 meter) velocities for pump stations 9, 10, and 11 are 376 m/s, 316 m/s, and 362 m/s, respectively.

Divergent Development of Manual Skills in Children Who Are Blind or Sighted

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brambring, Michael

2007-01-01

This empirical study compared the average ages at which four children with congenital blindness acquired 32 fine motor skills with age norms for sighted children. The results indicated that the children experienced extreme developmental delays in the acquisition of manual skills and a high degree of variability in developmental delays within and…

Microgravity Playscapes: Play in Long-Term Space Missions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liapi, Marianthi; Ackermann, Edith

2016-01-01

Th?e authors examine the potential impact of play on astronauts adapting to the extreme conditions of space travel. Th?ey cite research showing that well-trained astronauts, though in general physically fi?t and emotionally stable, can suffer from--among other things--boredom and sensory deprivation in the con?fines of the microgravity capsules…

In Situ Measurement of the Infrared Spectral Extinction for Various Chemical, Biological, and Background Aerosols

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-09-01

silicon dioxide that is composed of fine sub- micron SiO2 particles. Used commercially as a thickening agent for food and cosmetics, this silica ... aerogel ” is extremely amorphous (94% of its volume is air) and is sometimes used as a fluidizer to improve aerosol dissemination efficiencies. As a

Method and apparatus for controlling fluid flow

DOEpatents

Miller, J.R.

1980-06-27

A method and apparatus for precisely controlling the rate (and hence amount) of fluid flow are given. The controlled flow rate is finely adjustable, can be extremely small (on the order of microliter-atmospheres per second), can be adjusted to zero (flow stopped), and is stable to better than 1% with time. The dead volume of the valve can be made arbitrarily small, in fact essentially zero. The valve employs no wearing mechanical parts (including springs, stems, or seals). The valve is finely adjustable, has a flow rate dynamic range of many decades, can be made compatible with any fluid, and is suitable for incorporation into an open or closed loop servo-control system.

Hyalinizing Trabecular Tumor of the Thyroid Gland, a Diagnostic Challenge in Fine-Needle Aspiration Cytology: Case Report.

PubMed

Rhee, Ye-Young; Jung, Hong Kyu; Kim, Se Hoon; Kim, Soo Hee

2018-06-11

Hyalinizing trabecular tumor (HTT) is a rare thyroid tumor with low to minimal malignant potential. HTT is often misinterpreted as other thyroid tumors, including papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) and medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), on fine-needle aspiration (FNA) cytology, because of its overlapping cytologic features, such as nuclear grooves and intranulcear pseudoinclusions. Although cytopathologists cannot definitely conclude HTT by FNA cytology, suspicion of HTT is necessary to avoid misdiagnosing HTT as PTC or MTC and to avoid unnecessary aggressive treatment. Here, we report a case of HTT with novel cytologic features in CellPrep liquid based cytology that was diagnosed as suspicious for papillary carcinoma by FNA and finally diagnosed as HTT in the surgical specimen.

A fine resolution multifrequency polarimetric FM radar

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bredow, J.; Gogineni, S.; Leung, T.; Moore, R. K.

1988-01-01

A fine resolution polarimetric FM SAR was developed for optimization of polarimetric SARs and interpretation of SAR data via controlled experiments with surface-base sensors. The system is designed for collecting polarimetric data at 5.3 and 10 GHz over incidence angles from 0 to 60 deg. Features of the system include broad bandwidth to obtain fine range resolution, phase stabilization and linearization loop circuitry, and digital signal processing capability. The system is used in a research program to collect polarimetric backscatter data from artificial sea ice research and design trade-offs, laboratory and field evaluation, as well as results from experiments on artificial sea ice are presented.

A piano training program to improve manual dexterity and upper extremity function in chronic stroke survivors.

PubMed

Villeneuve, Myriam; Penhune, Virginia; Lamontagne, Anouk

2014-01-01

Music-supported therapy was shown to induce improvements in motor skills in stroke survivors. Whether all stroke individuals respond similarly to the intervention and whether gains can be maintained over time remain unknown. We estimated the immediate and retention effects of a piano training program on upper extremity function in persons with chronic stroke. Thirteen stroke participants engaged in a 3-week piano training comprising supervised sessions (9 × 60 min) and home practice. Fine and gross manual dexterity, movement coordination, and functional use of the upper extremity were assessed at baseline, pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at a 3-week follow-up. Significant improvements were observed for all outcomes at post-intervention and follow-up compared to pre-intervention scores. Larger magnitudes of change in manual dexterity and functional use of the upper extremity were associated with higher initial levels of motor recovery. Piano training can result in sustainable improvements in upper extremity function in chronic stroke survivors. Individuals with a higher initial level of motor recovery at baseline appear to benefit the most from this intervention.

A new hypothesis and exploratory model for the formation of large-scale inner-shelf sediment sorting and "rippled scour depressions"

USGS Publications Warehouse

Murray, A.B.; Thieler, E.R.

2004-01-01

Recent observations of inner continental shelves in many regions show numerous collections of relatively coarse sediment, which extend kilometers in the cross-shore direction and are on the order of 100m wide. These "rippled scour depressions" have been interpreted to indicate concentrated cross-shelf currents. However, recent observations strongly suggest that they are associated with sediment transport along-shore rather than cross-shore. A new hypothesis for the origin of these features involves the large wave-generated ripples that form in the coarse material. Wave motions interacting with these large roughness elements generate near-bed turbulence that is greatly enhanced relative to that in other areas. This enhances entrainment and inhibits settling of fine material in an area dominated by coarse sediment. The fine sediment is then carried by mean currents past the coarse accumulations, and deposited where the bed is finer. We hypothesize that these interactions constitute a feedback tending to produce accumulations of fine material separated by self-perpetuating patches of coarse sediments. As with many types of self-organized bedforms, small features would interact as they migrate, leading to a better-organized, larger-scale pattern. As an initial test of this hypothesis, we use a numerical model treating the transport of coarse and fine sediment fractions, treated as functions of the local bed composition - a proxy for the presence of large roughness elements in coarse areas. Large-scale sorted patterns exhibiting the main characteristics of the natural features result robustly in the model, indicating that this new hypothesis offers a plausible explanation for the phenomena. ?? 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Riedel thyroiditis: Fine needle aspiration findings of a rare entity.

PubMed

Weidner, Anna-Sophie; Molina, David; DeSimone, Robert A; Cohen, Marc A; Giorgadze, Tamar; Scognamiglio, Theresa; Hoda, Rana S

2015-09-01

Riedel thyroiditis is a rare fibrosing disorder characterized by extension of the fibroinflammatory process beyond the thyroid capsule. Due to the nature of this lesion, fine-needle aspiration often yields scant material and may be interpreted as non-diagnostic. In this report, we describe cytologic features that allow the cytopathologist to favor a diagnosis of Riedel thyroiditis, thereby guiding appropriate further work-up and management. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Rocket observations of electron-density irregularities in the equatorial ionosphere below 200 km

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klaus, D. E.; Smith, L. G.

1978-01-01

Nike Apache rockets carring instrumentation to measure electron density and its fine structure in the equatorial ionosphere were launched from Chilca, Peru in May and June 1975. The fine structure experiment and the data reduction system are described. Results obtained from this system are presented and compared with those obtained by VHF radar and from other rocket studies. A description of the equatorial ionosphere and its features is also presented.

An efficient abnormal cervical cell detection system based on multi-instance extreme learning machine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Lili; Yin, Jianping; Yuan, Lihuan; Liu, Qiang; Li, Kuan; Qiu, Minghui

2017-07-01

Automatic detection of abnormal cells from cervical smear images is extremely demanded in annual diagnosis of women's cervical cancer. For this medical cell recognition problem, there are three different feature sections, namely cytology morphology, nuclear chromatin pathology and region intensity. The challenges of this problem come from feature combination s and classification accurately and efficiently. Thus, we propose an efficient abnormal cervical cell detection system based on multi-instance extreme learning machine (MI-ELM) to deal with above two questions in one unified framework. MI-ELM is one of the most promising supervised learning classifiers which can deal with several feature sections and realistic classification problems analytically. Experiment results over Herlev dataset demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms three traditional methods for two-class classification in terms of well accuracy and less time.

Upper extremity paraesthesia: clinical assessment and reasoning.

PubMed

Muscolino, Joseph E

2008-07-01

The art of clinical assessment involves an accurate determination of the cause(s) of a patient's symptoms. Given that a set of symptoms can be influenced by many contributing factors and features, assessment needs to differentially evaluate these. Accurate and appropriate treatment depends on differential assessment based on sound clinical reasoning. Many conditions derive from multiple causes demanding evaluation of as many etiological features as can be identified. The case review presented here involves a patient presenting with paraesthesia spreading into her right upper extremity. A complex history, involving her neck and contralateral upper extremity was assessed. The patient was found to have at least seven underlying, predisposing, and etiological, conditions capable of initiating, aggravating, or maintaining the presenting symptoms. Weighing the relative contributions of these often interacting features, and correlating this with the history, helped to identify a successful course of treatment.

Effect of constraint-induced movement therapy and mirror therapy for patients with subacute stroke.

PubMed

Yoon, Jin A; Koo, Bon Il; Shin, Myung Jun; Shin, Yong Beom; Ko, Hyun-Yoon; Shin, Yong-Il

2014-08-01

To evaluate the effectiveness of constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) and combined mirror therapy for inpatient rehabilitation of the patients with subacute stroke. Twenty-six patients with subacute stroke were enrolled and randomly divided into three groups: CIMT combined with mirror therapy group, CIMT only group, and control group. Two weeks of CIMT for 6 hours a day with or without mirror therapy for 30 minutes a day were performed under supervision. All groups received conventional occupational therapy for 40 minutes a day for the same period. The CIMT only group and control group also received additional self-exercise to substitute for mirror therapy. The box and block test, 9-hole Pegboard test, grip strength, Brunnstrom stage, Wolf motor function test, Fugl-Meyer assessment, and the Korean version of Modified Barthel Index were performed prior to and two weeks after the treatment. After two weeks of treatment, the CIMT groups with and without mirror therapy showed higher improvement (p<0.05) than the control group, in most of functional assessments for hemiplegic upper extremity. The CIMT combined with mirror therapy group showed higher improvement than CIMT only group in box and block test, 9-hole Pegboard test, and grip strength, which represent fine motor functions of the upper extremity. The short-term CIMT combined with mirror therapy group showed more improvement compared to CIMT only group and control group, in the fine motor functions of hemiplegic upper extremity for the patients with subacute stroke.

Sedimentary processes associated with sand and boulder deposits formed by the 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami at Sabusawa Island, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goto, Kazuhisa; Sugawara, Daisuke; Ikema, Satoko; Miyagi, Toyohiko

2012-12-01

This paper reports on the sedimentary processes of sand and boulder deposition at Sabusawa Island, Japan as a result of the 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami. Boulders were composed of tuffaceous rocks and sourced from an earthquake-triggered slope failure as well as concrete fragments of seawall. They were scattered over the ground surface and did not form boulder ridges, although there was some local imbrication. The boulders were deposited on top of a sand layer indicating that the latter, possibly deposited from bed load, covered the ground surface first. This sand layer probably reduced friction allowing boulders to be transported more easily than might be expected across a hard ground with a high bottom friction. Sand deposits showed landward thinning and fining features, while the boulders showed a landward coarsening (tuffaceous boulders) or a landward fining (concrete boulders), indicating that large clasts were not necessarily scattered randomly but rather might have a clast size gradient with distance inland. These features are explained by the local topographic setting that constrained the directions of incoming and returning tsunami flows. Some clasts at the inland extent of the boulder field were covered by an upward fining sand layer. This feature suggests that the boulders were deposited prior to the suspended sands, with the latter subsequently laid down before the water level dropped below the top of the boulders. Such modern investigations of the sedimentary features of various sizes of grains and clasts immediately after a tsunami provide invaluable data for the reconstruction of inundation processes.

An Improved Iris Recognition Algorithm Based on Hybrid Feature and ELM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Juan

2018-03-01

The iris image is easily polluted by noise and uneven light. This paper proposed an improved extreme learning machine (ELM) based iris recognition algorithm with hybrid feature. 2D-Gabor filters and GLCM is employed to generate a multi-granularity hybrid feature vector. 2D-Gabor filter and GLCM feature work for capturing low-intermediate frequency and high frequency texture information, respectively. Finally, we utilize extreme learning machine for iris recognition. Experimental results reveal our proposed ELM based multi-granularity iris recognition algorithm (ELM-MGIR) has higher accuracy of 99.86%, and lower EER of 0.12% under the premise of real-time performance. The proposed ELM-MGIR algorithm outperforms other mainstream iris recognition algorithms.

Clumsiness in fine motor tasks: evidence from the quantitative drawing evaluation of children with Down Syndrome.

PubMed

Vimercati, S L; Galli, M; Stella, G; Caiazzo, G; Ancillao, A; Albertini, G

2015-03-01

Drawing tests are commonly used for the clinical evaluation of cognitive capabilities in children with learning disabilities. We analysed quantitatively the drawings of children with Down Syndrome (DS) and of healthy, mental age-matched controls to characterise the features of fine motor skills in DS during a drawing task, with particular attention to clumsiness, a well-known feature of DS gross movements. Twenty-three children with DS and 13 controls hand-copied the figures of a circle, a cross and a square on a sheet. An optoelectronic system allowed the acquisition of the three-dimensional track of the drawing. The participants' posture and upper limb movements were analysed as well. Results showed that the participants with DS tended to draw faster but with less accuracy than controls. While clumsiness in gross movements manifests mainly as slow, less efficient movements, it manifests as high velocity and inaccurate movements in fine motor tasks such as drawing. © 2014 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

High-Resolution X-Ray and Neutron Computed Tomography of an Engine Combustion Network Spray G Gasoline Injector

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Duke, Daniel J.; Finney, Charles E. A.; Kastengren, Alan

Given the importance of the fuel-injection process on the combustion and emissions performance of gasoline direct injected engines, there has been significant recent interest in understanding the fluid dynamics within the injector, particularly around the needle and through the nozzles. Furthermore, the pressure losses and transients that occur in the flow passages above the needle are also of interest. Simulations of these injectors typically use the nominal design geometry, which does not always match the production geometry. Computed tomography (CT) using x-ray and neutron sources can be used to obtain the real geometry from production injectors, but there are trade-offsmore » in using these techniques. X-ray CT provides high resolution, but cannot penetrate through the thicker parts of the injector. Neutron CT has excellent penetrating power but lower resolution. Here, we present results from a joint effort to characterize a gasoline direct injector representative of the Spray G injector as defined by the Engine Combustion Network. High-resolution (1.2 to 3 µm) x-ray CT measurements from the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory were combined with moderate-resolution (40 µm) neutron CT measurements from the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to generate a complete internal geometry for the injector. This effort combined the strengths of both facilities’ capabilities, with extremely fine spatially resolved features in the nozzles and injector tips and fine resolution of internal features of the needle along the length of injector. Analysis of the resulting surface model of the internal fluid flow volumes of the injector reveals how the internal cross-sectional area and nozzle hole geometry differs slightly from the design dimensions. A simplified numerical simulation of the internal flow shows how deviations from the design geometry can alter the flow inside the sac and holes. Our results of this study will provide computational modelers with very accurate solid and surface models for use in computational fluid dynamics studies and experimentalists with increased insight into the operating characteristics of their injectors.« less

High-Resolution X-Ray and Neutron Computed Tomography of an Engine Combustion Network Spray G Gasoline Injector

DOE PAGES

Duke, Daniel J.; Finney, Charles E. A.; Kastengren, Alan; ...

2017-03-14

Given the importance of the fuel-injection process on the combustion and emissions performance of gasoline direct injected engines, there has been significant recent interest in understanding the fluid dynamics within the injector, particularly around the needle and through the nozzles. Furthermore, the pressure losses and transients that occur in the flow passages above the needle are also of interest. Simulations of these injectors typically use the nominal design geometry, which does not always match the production geometry. Computed tomography (CT) using x-ray and neutron sources can be used to obtain the real geometry from production injectors, but there are trade-offsmore » in using these techniques. X-ray CT provides high resolution, but cannot penetrate through the thicker parts of the injector. Neutron CT has excellent penetrating power but lower resolution. Here, we present results from a joint effort to characterize a gasoline direct injector representative of the Spray G injector as defined by the Engine Combustion Network. High-resolution (1.2 to 3 µm) x-ray CT measurements from the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory were combined with moderate-resolution (40 µm) neutron CT measurements from the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to generate a complete internal geometry for the injector. This effort combined the strengths of both facilities’ capabilities, with extremely fine spatially resolved features in the nozzles and injector tips and fine resolution of internal features of the needle along the length of injector. Analysis of the resulting surface model of the internal fluid flow volumes of the injector reveals how the internal cross-sectional area and nozzle hole geometry differs slightly from the design dimensions. A simplified numerical simulation of the internal flow shows how deviations from the design geometry can alter the flow inside the sac and holes. Our results of this study will provide computational modelers with very accurate solid and surface models for use in computational fluid dynamics studies and experimentalists with increased insight into the operating characteristics of their injectors.« less

Development of the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences Guideline for Rating the Impairment in the Brain Injured and Brain Diseased Persons with Motor Dysfunction

PubMed Central

Baik, Jong Sam; Jang, Seong Ho; Park, Dong Sik

2009-01-01

To develop an objective and scientific method to evaluate the brain injured and brain diseased persons with motor dysfunction, American Medical Association's Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment was used as an exemplar. After the motor dysfunction due to brain injury or brain disease was confirmed, active range of motion and muscle strength of affected extremities were measured. Also, the total function of extremities was evaluated through the assessment of activities of daily living, fine coordination of hand, balance and gait. Then, the total score of manual muscle test and functional assessment of impaired upper and lower extremity were added, respectively. Spasticity of upper and lower extremity was used as minus factors. Patients with movement disorder such as Parkinson's disease were assessed based on the degree of dysfunction in response to medication. We develop a new rating system based on the concept of total score. PMID:19503680

Supersymmetry, naturalness, and signatures at the CERN LHC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitano, Ryuichiro; Nomura, Yasunori

2006-05-01

Weak scale supersymmetry is often said to be fine-tuned, especially if the matter content is minimal. This is not true if there is a large A term for the top squarks. We present a systematic study on fine-tuning in minimal supersymmetric theories and identify low-energy spectra that do not lead to severe fine-tuning. Characteristic features of these spectra are: a large A term for the top squarks, small top squark masses, moderately large tan⁡β, and a small μ parameter. There are classes of theories leading to these features, which are discussed. In one class, which allows a complete elimination of fine-tuning, the Higgsinos are the lightest among all the superpartners of the standard model particles, leading to three nearly degenerate neutralino/chargino states. This gives interesting signals at the LHC—the dilepton invariant mass distribution has a very small endpoint and shows a particular shape determined by the Higgsino nature of the two lightest neutralinos. We demonstrate that these signals are indeed useful in realistic analyses by performing Monte Carlo simulations, including detector simulations and background estimations. We also present a method that allows the determination of all the relevant superparticle masses without using input from particular models, despite the limited kinematical information due to short cascades. This allows us to test various possible models, which is demonstrated in the case of a model with mixed moduli-anomaly mediation. We also give a simple derivation of special renormalization group properties associated with moduli mediated supersymmetry-breaking, which are relevant in a model without fine-tuning.

Merging fine and coarse resolution remotely sensed data with household-level survey data to evaluate small-scale vulnerability to climate change in West Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grace, K.; Husak, G. J.

2016-12-01

Climate change, in the form of increasingly variable temperatures and rainfall, is anticipated to have potentially dramatic impacts on subsistence agricultural communities throughout the world. Poor people who depend on rainfall to produce food or to produce products to sell to buy food are expected to be particularly vulnerable to the negative impacts associated with climate change. Poor people have extremely limited resources that can be used to cope with weather events and these resources are even more strained when the individuals live in poor countries. While poor and rural producers are most likely to face high levels of vulnerability to food insecurity due to their dependence on rainfall for their agricultural production, annual agricultural censuses are virtually non-existent. Surveying all of the producers in a country each year is extremely costly owing to difficulties in accessing farmers and the costs associated with extensive surveys. The result, however, is very limited information on the spatial and temporal variation in production and the resulting impacts on micro-scale food insecurity and livelihood stability. In this project we use a combination of fine and coarse resolution remotely sensed data ( 1m data, 250m NDVI data and 10km rainfall data, and others) and recently collected survey data from the World Bank to estimate agricultural and land use characteristics at a fine spatial scale in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. The analysis will produce estimates of cultivated area that incorporate spatially dynamic climate and vegetation data but that also account for the variation in agricultural practices associated with the different ethnic and religious groups within each country. The survey data will help to calibrate the models and will also serve as a way to validate the statistical models used to estimate on the ground agricultural practices. The models will then be used to evaluate fine-scale agricultural response to climate change in the form of drying and warming.

High-Resolution Radar Imagery of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harmon, John K.; Nolan, M. C.

2009-09-01

We present high-resolution radar images of Mars obtained during the 2005 and 2007 oppositions. The images were constructed from long-code delay-Doppler observations made with the Arecibo S-band (13-cm) radar. The average image resolution of 3 km represented a better than order-of-magnitude improvement over pre-upgrade Arecibo imagery of the planet. Images of depolarized reflectivity (an indicator primarily of wavelength-scale surface roughness) show the same bright volcanic flow features seen in earlier imagery, but with much finer detail. A new image of the Elysium region shows fine detail in the radar-bright channels of Athabasca Vallis, Marte Vallis, and Grjota Vallis. The new images of Tharsis and Olympus Mons also show a complex array of radar-bright and radar-dark features. Southern Amazonis exhibits some of the most complex and puzzling radar-bright structure on the planet. Another curiosity is the Chryse/Xanthe/Channels region, where we find some radar-bright features in or adjacent to fluvial chaos structures. Chryse/Xanthe is also the only region of Mars showing radar-bright craters (which are rare on Mars but common on the Moon and Mercury). We also obtained the first delay-Doppler image showing the enhanced backscatter from the residual south polar ice cap. In addition to the depolarized imagery, we were able to make the first delay-Doppler images of the circular polarization ratio (an important diagnostic for surface roughness texture). We find that vast areas of the radar-bright volcanic regions have polarization ratios close to unity. Such high ratios are rare for terrestrial lava flows and only seen for extremely blocky surfaces giving high levels of multiple scattering.

FNA cytology of solitary fibrous tumors and the diagnostic value of STAT6 immunocytochemistry.

PubMed

Tani, Edneia; Wejde, Johan; Åström, Kristina; Wingmo, Inga-Lill; Larsson, Olle; Haglund, Felix

2018-01-01

Solitary fibrous tumors (SFTs) are rare mesenchymal tumors commonly located in the pleura, soft tissues, or meninges and are characterized by the NGFI-A-binding protein 2 (NAB2)-signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 (STAT6) fusion gene. Recent studies have indicated that nuclear STAT6 immunohistochemistry is a specific marker for SFTs. The authors reviewed fine-needle aspiration (FNA) specimens from extracranial SFTs diagnosed at their institution between 1993 and 2017. Histologic blocks and available formalin-fixed smears of FNA specimens from SFTs were investigated for STAT6 immunoreactivity using a monoclonal antibody. STAT6 immunocytochemistry was also investigated in schwannomas and spindle cell lipomas. Cytopathologic and clinical characteristics were described. Nineteen benign and 9 malignant SFTs were identified. Both benign and malignant SFTs had a female predominance (female-to-male ratio, 2.8:1 and 1.25, respectively). Localization varied, and approximately one-half of the extrapleural tumors were located in the extremities and frequently were intramuscular. Benign and malignant primary tumors had limited differences in cytologic presentation, the most notable feature being nuclear pleomorphism. Cytomorphologic features included low-to-moderate cellularity of mixed oval, elongated, round, and stellate cells with pink collagenous stroma and hypercellular clusters with infrequent atypia. In metastatic SFTs, the cytopathology was suggestive of sarcoma. Immunohistochemistry revealed nuclear STAT6 immunoreactivity in SFTs (n = 5) with cytoplasmic reactivity in cytologic mimickers. Benign and malignant SFTs have common cytopathologic features, and the ability to distinguish between them is limited. Nuclear STAT6 immunoreactivity is a valuable cytologic marker for SFTs. Cancer Cytopathol 2018;126:36-43. © 2017 American Cancer Society. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

Ultrahigh resolution drug design I: details of interactions in human aldose reductase-inhibitor complex at 0.66 A.

PubMed

Howard, E I; Sanishvili, R; Cachau, R E; Mitschler, A; Chevrier, B; Barth, P; Lamour, V; Van Zandt, M; Sibley, E; Bon, C; Moras, D; Schneider, T R; Joachimiak, A; Podjarny, A

2004-06-01

The first subatomic resolution structure of a 36 kDa protein [aldose reductase (AR)] is presented. AR was cocrystallized at pH 5.0 with its cofactor NADP+ and inhibitor IDD 594, a therapeutic candidate for the treatment of diabetic complications. X-ray diffraction data were collected up to 0.62 A resolution and treated up to 0.66 A resolution. Anisotropic refinement followed by a blocked matrix inversion produced low standard deviations (<0.005 A). The model was very well ordered overall (CA atoms' mean B factor is 5.5 A2). The model and the electron-density maps revealed fine features, such as H-atoms, bond densities, and significant deviations from standard stereochemistry. Other features, such as networks of hydrogen bonds (H bonds), a large number of multiple conformations, and solvent structure were also better defined. Most of the atoms in the active site region were extremely well ordered (mean B approximately 3 A2), leading to the identification of the protonation states of the residues involved in catalysis. The electrostatic interactions of the inhibitor's charged carboxylate head with the catalytic residues and the charged coenzyme NADP+ explained the inhibitor's noncompetitive character. Furthermore, a short contact involving the IDD 594 bromine atom explained the selectivity profile of the inhibitor, important feature to avoid toxic effects. The presented structure and the details revealed are instrumental for better understanding of the inhibition mechanism of AR by IDD 594, and hence, for the rational drug design of future inhibitors. This work demonstrates the capabilities of subatomic resolution experiments and stimulates further developments of methods allowing the use of the full potential of these experiments. Copyright 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Coarse-to-fine wavelet-based airport detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Cheng; Wang, Shuigen; Pang, Zhaofeng; Zhao, Baojun

2015-10-01

Airport detection on optical remote sensing images has attracted great interest in the applications of military optics scout and traffic control. However, most of the popular techniques for airport detection from optical remote sensing images have three weaknesses: 1) Due to the characteristics of optical images, the detection results are often affected by imaging conditions, like weather situation and imaging distortion; and 2) optical images contain comprehensive information of targets, so that it is difficult for extracting robust features (e.g., intensity and textural information) to represent airport area; 3) the high resolution results in large data volume, which makes real-time processing limited. Most of the previous works mainly focus on solving one of those problems, and thus, the previous methods cannot achieve the balance of performance and complexity. In this paper, we propose a novel coarse-to-fine airport detection framework to solve aforementioned three issues using wavelet coefficients. The framework includes two stages: 1) an efficient wavelet-based feature extraction is adopted for multi-scale textural feature representation, and support vector machine(SVM) is exploited for classifying and coarsely deciding airport candidate region; and then 2) refined line segment detection is used to obtain runway and landing field of airport. Finally, airport recognition is achieved by applying the fine runway positioning to the candidate regions. Experimental results show that the proposed approach outperforms the existing algorithms in terms of detection accuracy and processing efficiency.

Long-term channel adjustment and geomorphic feature creation by vegetation in a lowland, low energy river

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grabowski, Robert; Gurnell, Angela

2016-04-01

Physical habitat restoration is increasingly being used to improve the ecological status of rivers. This is particularly true for lowland streams which are perceived to lack sufficient energy to create new features or to flush out fine sediment derived from agricultural and urban sources. However, this study has found that even in low-energy, base-flow dominated chalk streams, physical habitat improvement can happen naturally without direct human intervention. Furthermore this positive change is achieved by components of the river that are often regarded as management problems: in-stream macrophytes (i.e. weed), riparian trees, woody debris, and most importantly fine sediment. This project investigated the long-term changes in channel planform for the River Frome (Dorset, UK) over the last 120 years and the role of aquatic and riparian vegetation in driving this change. Agricultural census data, historical maps, recent aerial images and field observations were analysed within a process-based, hierarchical framework for hydromorphological assessment, developed in the EU FP7 REFORM project, to investigate the source and timing of fine sediment production in the catchment, to quantify the reach-scale geomorphic response, and to identify vegetation-related bedforms that could be responsible for the adjustment. The analysis reveals that the channel has narrowed and become more sinuous in the last 50-60 years. The timing of this planform adjustment correlates with substantial changes in land use and agricultural practices (post-World War II) that are known to increase soil erosion and sediment connectivity. The field observations and recent aerial images suggest that the increased delivery of fine sediment to the channel has been translated into geomorphic adjustment and diversification though the interactions between vegetation, water flow and sediment. Emergent aquatic macrophytes are retaining fine sediment, leading to the development of submerged shelves that aggrade over time to form bars, berms and benches. This process drives the extension of the river bank into the channel, narrowing it and increasing sinuosity. In reaches with well-developed woody riparian vegetation, the geomorphic changes are more complex, with fine sediment being absorbed into a diverse mosaic of geomorphic features initiated by living trees and large wood. This study underlines the importance of vegetation for the geomorphic adjustment and diversification of lowland rivers and as a component of sustainable river management.

Model Analysis of Fine Structures of Student Models: An Example with Newton's Third Law.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bao, Lei; Hogg, Kirsten; Zollman, Dean

2002-01-01

Studies the role of context in students' uses of alternative conceptual models by using Newton's third law. Identifies four contextual features that are frequently used by students in their reasoning. Probes the effects of specific contextual features on student reasoning using a multiple-choice survey. (Contains 39 references.) (Author/YDS)

A review of hybrid implicit explicit finite difference time domain method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Juan

2018-06-01

The finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method has been extensively used to simulate varieties of electromagnetic interaction problems. However, because of its Courant-Friedrich-Levy (CFL) condition, the maximum time step size of this method is limited by the minimum size of cell used in the computational domain. So the FDTD method is inefficient to simulate the electromagnetic problems which have very fine structures. To deal with this problem, the Hybrid Implicit Explicit (HIE)-FDTD method is developed. The HIE-FDTD method uses the hybrid implicit explicit difference in the direction with fine structures to avoid the confinement of the fine spatial mesh on the time step size. So this method has much higher computational efficiency than the FDTD method, and is extremely useful for the problems which have fine structures in one direction. In this paper, the basic formulations, time stability condition and dispersion error of the HIE-FDTD method are presented. The implementations of several boundary conditions, including the connect boundary, absorbing boundary and periodic boundary are described, then some applications and important developments of this method are provided. The goal of this paper is to provide an historical overview and future prospects of the HIE-FDTD method.

Onekotan Island, Kurile Chain, Russia as seen from STS-59

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

The narrow end of Onekotan Island is to the north by northeast. This is one of several volcanic islands extending south by southwest between the southern tip of Kamchatka and Japan. The exposure was stopped down to provide extremely fine detail in the totally snow-covered landscape, at the same time making the dark sea look completely black.

Pituitary carcinoma diagnosed on fine needle aspiration: Report of a case and review of pathogenesis

PubMed Central

Yakoushina, Tatiana V.; Lavi, Ehud; Hoda, R. S.

2010-01-01

Pituitary carcinoma (PC) is a very rare entity (0.2% of all pituitary tumors), with only about 140 cases reported in English literature. There are no reliable histological, immunohistochemical or ultrastructural features distinguishing pituitary adenoma (PA) from PC. By definition, a diagnosis of PC is made after a patient with PA develops non-contiguous central nervous system (CNS) or systemic metastases. To date, only three cases of PC have been reportedly diagnosed on fine needle aspiration (FNA). Two of the reported cases were diagnosed on FNA of the cervical lymph nodes and one on FNA of the vertebral bone lesion. Herein, we present a case of PC, diagnosed on FNA of the liver lesion. In this case, we describe cytologic features of PC and compare them to histologic features of the tumor in the pituitary. Clinical behavior of tumor, pathogenesis of metastasis and immunochemical and prognostic markers will also be described. PMID:20806088

A Fine-Scale Functional Logic to Convergence from Retina to Thalamus.

PubMed

Liang, Liang; Fratzl, Alex; Goldey, Glenn; Ramesh, Rohan N; Sugden, Arthur U; Morgan, Josh L; Chen, Chinfei; Andermann, Mark L

2018-05-31

Numerous well-defined classes of retinal ganglion cells innervate the thalamus to guide image-forming vision, yet the rules governing their convergence and divergence remain unknown. Using two-photon calcium imaging in awake mouse thalamus, we observed a functional arrangement of retinal ganglion cell axonal boutons in which coarse-scale retinotopic ordering gives way to fine-scale organization based on shared preferences for other visual features. Specifically, at the ∼6 μm scale, clusters of boutons from different axons often showed similar preferences for either one or multiple features, including axis and direction of motion, spatial frequency, and changes in luminance. Conversely, individual axons could "de-multiplex" information channels by participating in multiple, functionally distinct bouton clusters. Finally, ultrastructural analyses demonstrated that retinal axonal boutons in a local cluster often target the same dendritic domain. These data suggest that functionally specific convergence and divergence of retinal axons may impart diverse, robust, and often novel feature selectivity to visual thalamus. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Air Pollution Episodes Associated with Prescribed Burns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hart, M.; Di Virgilio, G.; Jiang, N.

2017-12-01

Air pollution events associated with wildfires have been associated with extreme health impacts. Prescribed burns are an important tool to reduce the severity of wildfires. However, if undertaken during unfavourable meteorological conditions, they too have the capacity to trigger extreme air pollution events. The Australian state of New South Wales has increased the annual average area treated by prescribed burn activities by 45%, in order to limit wildfire activity. Prescribed burns need to be undertaken during meteorological conditions that allow the fuel load to burn, while still allowing the burn to remain under control. These conditions are similar to those that inhibit atmospheric dispersion, resulting in a fine balance between managing fire risk and managing ambient air pollution. During prescribed burns, the Sydney air shed can experience elevated particulate matter concentrations, especially fine particulates (PM2.5) that occasionally exceed national air quality standards. Using pollutant and meteorological data from sixteen monitoring stations in Sydney we used generalized additive model and CART analyses to profile the meteorological conditions influencing air quality during planned burns. The insights gained from this study will help improve prescribed burn scheduling in order to reduce the pollution risk to the community, while allowing fire agencies to conduct this important work.

A Bi-Modal Distribution of ALHA77307 Matrix Olivine: Evidence for Fine-Grained Mixing from Multiple Reservoirs in the CO Formation Zone

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frank, D.; Zolensky, Michael E.; Brearley, A.; Le, L.

2011-01-01

The CO 3.0 chondrite ALHA77307 is thought to be the least metamorphosed of all the CO chondrites [1]. As such, the fine-grained (<30 m) olivine found in its matrix is a valuable resource for investigating the CO formation environment since its compositions should be primary. In the CO matrix, we indeed find a wide range of major element compositions (Fa(0.5-71)). However, more importantly, we find that the olivines make up two compositionally distinct populations (Fa(0.5-5) and Fa(21-71)). Grains from both populations are found within an extremely close proximity and we see no obvious evidence of two distinct lithologies within our samples. Therefore, we conclude that the olivine grains found in the ALHA77307 matrix must have crystallized within two unique formation conditions and were later mixed at a very fine scale during the accretion epoch. Here, we propose a possible explanation based on Cr and Mn concentrations in the olivine.

Time-frequency model for echo-delay resolution in wideband biosonar.

PubMed

Neretti, Nicola; Sanderson, Mark I; Intrator, Nathan; Simmons, James A

2003-04-01

A time/frequency model of the bat's auditory system was developed to examine the basis for the fine (approximately 2 micros) echo-delay resolution of big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus), and its performance at resolving closely spaced FM sonar echoes in the bat's 20-100-kHz band at different signal-to-noise ratios was computed. The model uses parallel bandpass filters spaced over this band to generate envelopes that individually can have much lower bandwidth than the bat's ultrasonic sonar sounds and still achieve fine delay resolution. Because fine delay separations are inside the integration time of the model's filters (approximately 250-300 micros), resolving them means using interference patterns along the frequency dimension (spectral peaks and notches). The low bandwidth content of the filter outputs is suitable for relay of information to higher auditory areas that have intrinsically poor temporal response properties. If implemented in fully parallel analog-digital hardware, the model is computationally extremely efficient and would improve resolution in military and industrial sonar receivers.

Chronic Expanding Hematoma in the Extremities: A Clinical Problem of Adhesion to the Surrounding Tissues

PubMed Central

Okamoto, Takeshi; Matsuda, Shuichi

2017-01-01

Chronic expanding hematoma is characterized by continuous growth of a blood collection. We analyzed the clinical features of 7 patients with chronic expanding hematomas in the extremities, with an average age of 65.6 years. All lesions occurred in the lower extremities, with 4 seen in the thigh and 3 in the knee region. Six patients had subcutaneous hematomas, while 1 was deep-seated in the thigh. The magnetic resonance features of the lesion were compatible with those of a standard hematoma. A low signal intensity on T1- and T2-weighted imaging at the pseudocapsule was also characteristic. Cystic features were seen in 5 of 7 patients. All lesions were resected together with their pseudocapsule. In the subcutaneous lesions, it was necessary to resect adherent fascia, with or without involved skin. In the deep-seated thigh lesion, the common peroneal nerve was completely adherent to the pseudocapsule, a phenomenon from absence of the common peroneal nerve which appeared after resection. Chronic expanding hematomas of the extremities are predominantly located in the subcutaneous tissue of the lower extremity. The surrounding pseudocapsule is adherent to the adjacent tissues, and clinicians must be aware of this, especially when resecting a deep-seated lesion. PMID:28642872

Preliminary experiments on quantification of skin condition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitajima, Kenzo; Iyatomi, Hitoshi

2014-03-01

In this study, we investigated a preliminary assessment method for skin conditions such as a moisturizing property and its fineness of the skin with an image analysis only. We captured a facial images from volunteer subjects aged between 30s and 60s by Pocket Micro (R) device (Scalar Co., Japan). This device has two image capturing modes; the normal mode and the non-reflection mode with the aid of the equipped polarization filter. We captured skin images from a total of 68 spots from subjects' face using both modes (i.e. total of 136 skin images). The moisture-retaining property of the skin and subjective evaluation score of the skin fineness in 5-point scale for each case were also obtained in advance as a gold standard (their mean and SD were 35.15 +/- 3.22 (μS) and 3.45 +/- 1.17, respectively). We extracted a total of 107 image features from each image and built linear regression models for estimating abovementioned criteria with a stepwise feature selection. The developed model for estimating the skin moisture achieved the MSE of 1.92 (μS) with 6 selected parameters, while the model for skin fineness achieved that of 0.51 scales with 7 parameters under the leave-one-out cross validation. We confirmed the developed models predicted the moisture-retaining property and fineness of the skin appropriately with only captured image.

On the causes of variability in amounts of airborne grass pollen in Melbourne, Australia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Morton, Julian; Bye, John; Pezza, Alexandre; Newbigin, Edward

2011-07-01

In Melbourne, Australia, airborne grass pollen is the predominant cause of hay fever (seasonal rhinitis) during late spring and early summer, with levels of airborne grass pollen also influencing hospital admissions for asthma. In order to improve predictions of conditions that are potentially hazardous to susceptible individuals, we have sought to better understand the causes of diurnal, intra-seasonal and inter-seasonal variability of atmospheric grass pollen concentrations (APC) by analysing grass pollen count data for Melbourne for 16 grass pollen seasons from 1991 to 2008 (except 1994 and 1995). Some of notable features identified in this analysis were that on days when either extreme (>100 pollen grains m-3) or high (50-100 pollen grains m-3) levels of grass pollen were recorded the winds were of continental origin. In contrast, on days with a low (<20 pollen grains m-3) concentration of grass pollen, winds were of maritime origin. On extreme and high grass pollen days, a peak in APC occurred on average around 1730 hours, probably due to a reduction in surface boundary layer turbulence. The sum of daily APC for each grass pollen season was highly correlated ( r = 0.79) with spring rainfall in Melbourne for that year, with about 60% of a declining linear trend across the study period being attributable to a reduction of meat cattle and sheep (and hence grazing land) in rural areas around Melbourne. Finally, all of the ten extreme pollen events (3 days or more with APC > 100 pollen grains m-3) during the study period were characterised by an average downward vertical wind anomaly in the surface boundary layer over Melbourne. Together these findings form a basis for a fine resolution atmospheric general circulation model for grass pollen in Melbourne's air that can be used to predict daily (and hourly) APC. This information will be useful to those sectors of Melbourne's population that suffer from allergic problems.

On the causes of variability in amounts of airborne grass pollen in Melbourne, Australia.

PubMed

de Morton, Julian; Bye, John; Pezza, Alexandre; Newbigin, Edward

2011-07-01

In Melbourne, Australia, airborne grass pollen is the predominant cause of hay fever (seasonal rhinitis) during late spring and early summer, with levels of airborne grass pollen also influencing hospital admissions for asthma. In order to improve predictions of conditions that are potentially hazardous to susceptible individuals, we have sought to better understand the causes of diurnal, intra-seasonal and inter-seasonal variability of atmospheric grass pollen concentrations (APC) by analysing grass pollen count data for Melbourne for 16 grass pollen seasons from 1991 to 2008 (except 1994 and 1995). Some of notable features identified in this analysis were that on days when either extreme (>100 pollen grains m(-3)) or high (50-100 pollen grains m(-3)) levels of grass pollen were recorded the winds were of continental origin. In contrast, on days with a low (<20 pollen grains m(-3)) concentration of grass pollen, winds were of maritime origin. On extreme and high grass pollen days, a peak in APC occurred on average around 1730 hours, probably due to a reduction in surface boundary layer turbulence. The sum of daily APC for each grass pollen season was highly correlated (r = 0.79) with spring rainfall in Melbourne for that year, with about 60% of a declining linear trend across the study period being attributable to a reduction of meat cattle and sheep (and hence grazing land) in rural areas around Melbourne. Finally, all of the ten extreme pollen events (3 days or more with APC > 100 pollen grains m(-3)) during the study period were characterised by an average downward vertical wind anomaly in the surface boundary layer over Melbourne. Together these findings form a basis for a fine resolution atmospheric general circulation model for grass pollen in Melbourne's air that can be used to predict daily (and hourly) APC. This information will be useful to those sectors of Melbourne's population that suffer from allergic problems.

Polarized Ends of Human Macula Densa Cells: Ultrastructural Investigation and Morphofunctional Correlations.

PubMed

Cangiotti, Angela Maria; Lorenzi, Teresa; Zingaretti, Maria Cristina; Fabri, Mara; Morroni, Manrico

2018-05-01

The morphology of the kidney macula densa (MD) has extensively been investigated in animals, whereas human studies are scanty. We studied the fine structure of human MD cells focusing on their apical and basal ends and correlating structure and function. The MD region was examined by transmission electron microscopy in six renal biopsies from patients with kidney disease. Ultrastructural analysis of MD cells was performed on serial sections. MD cells show two polarized ends. The apical portion is characterized by a single, immotile cilium associated with microvilli; apically, cells are joined by adhering junctions. In the basal portion, the cytoplasm contains small, dense granules and numerous, irregular cytoplasmic projections extending to the adjacent extraglomerular mesangium. The projections often contain small, dense granules. A reticulated basement membrane around MD cells separates them from the extraglomerular mesangium. Although the fact that tissue specimens came from patients with kidney disease mandates extreme caution, ultrastructural examination confirmed that MD cells have sensory features due to the presence of the primary cilium, that they are connected by apical adhering junctions forming a barrier that separates the tubular flow from the interstitium, and that they present numerous basal interdigitations surrounded by a reticulated basement membrane. Conceivably, the latter two features are related to the functional activity of the MD. The small, dense granules in the basal cytoplasm and in cytoplasmic projections are likely related to the paracrine function of MD cells. Anat Rec, 301:922-931, 2018. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Assessment of the performance of CORDEX-SA experiments in simulating seasonal mean temperature over the Himalayan region for the present climate: Part I

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nengker, T.; Choudhary, A.; Dimri, A. P.

2018-04-01

The ability of an ensemble of five regional climate models (hereafter RCMs) under Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiments-South Asia (hereafter, CORDEX-SA) in simulating the key features of present day near surface mean air temperature (Tmean) climatology (1970-2005) over the Himalayan region is studied. The purpose of this paper is to understand the consistency in the performance of models across the ensemble, space and seasons. For this a number of statistical measures like trend, correlation, variance, probability distribution function etc. are applied to evaluate the performance of models against observation and simultaneously the underlying uncertainties between them for four different seasons. The most evident finding from the study is the presence of a large cold bias (-6 to -8 °C) which is systematically seen across all the models and across space and time over the Himalayan region. However, these RCMs with its fine resolution perform extremely well in capturing the spatial distribution of the temperature features as indicated by a consistently high spatial correlation (greater than 0.9) with the observation in all seasons. In spite of underestimation in simulated temperature and general intensification of cold bias with increasing elevation the models show a greater rate of warming than the observation throughout entire altitudinal stretch of study region. During winter, the simulated rate of warming gets even higher at high altitudes. Moreover, a seasonal response of model performance and its spatial variability to elevation is found.

Three sets of crystallographic sub-planar structures in quartz formed by tectonic deformation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Derez, Tine; Pennock, Gill; Drury, Martyn; Sintubin, Manuel

2016-05-01

In quartz, multiple sets of fine planar deformation microstructures that have specific crystallographic orientations parallel to planes with low Miller-Bravais indices are commonly considered as shock-induced planar deformation features (PDFs) diagnostic of shock metamorphism. Using polarized light microscopy, we demonstrate that up to three sets of tectonically induced sub-planar fine extinction bands (FEBs), sub-parallel to the basal, γ, ω, and π crystallographic planes, are common in vein quartz in low-grade tectonometamorphic settings. We conclude that the observation of multiple (2-3) sets of fine scale, closely spaced, crystallographically controlled, sub-planar microstructures is not sufficient to unambiguously distinguish PDFs from tectonic FEBs.

Axions, inflation and the anthropic principle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mack, Katherine J.

2011-07-01

The QCD axion is the leading solution to the strong-CP problem, a dark matter candidate, and a possible result of string theory compactifications. However, for axions produced before inflation, symmetry-breaking scales of fagtrsim1012 GeV (which are favored in string-theoretic axion models) are ruled out by cosmological constraints unless both the axion misalignment angle θ0 and the inflationary Hubble scale HI are extremely fine-tuned. We show that attempting to accommodate a high-fa axion in inflationary cosmology leads to a fine-tuning problem that is worse than the strong-CP problem the axion was originally invented to solve. We also show that this problem remains unresolved by anthropic selection arguments commonly applied to the high-fa axion scenario.

Granulation of fine powder

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Ching-Fong

A mixture of fine powder including thorium oxide was converted to granulated powder by forming a first-green-body and heat treating the first-green-body at a high temperature to strengthen the first-green-body followed by granulation by crushing or milling the heat-treated first-green-body. The granulated powder was achieved by screening through a combination of sieves to achieve the desired granule size distribution. The granulated powder relies on the thermal bonding to maintain its shape and structure. The granulated powder contains no organic binder and can be stored in a radioactive or other extreme environment. The granulated powder was pressed and sintered to formmore » a dense compact with a higher density and more uniform pore size distribution.« less

A nonrecursive order N preconditioned conjugate gradient: Range space formulation of MDOF dynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kurdila, Andrew J.

1990-01-01

While excellent progress has been made in deriving algorithms that are efficient for certain combinations of system topologies and concurrent multiprocessing hardware, several issues must be resolved to incorporate transient simulation in the control design process for large space structures. Specifically, strategies must be developed that are applicable to systems with numerous degrees of freedom. In addition, the algorithms must have a growth potential in that they must also be amenable to implementation on forthcoming parallel system architectures. For mechanical system simulation, this fact implies that algorithms are required that induce parallelism on a fine scale, suitable for the emerging class of highly parallel processors; and transient simulation methods must be automatically load balancing for a wider collection of system topologies and hardware configurations. These problems are addressed by employing a combination range space/preconditioned conjugate gradient formulation of multi-degree-of-freedom dynamics. The method described has several advantages. In a sequential computing environment, the method has the features that: by employing regular ordering of the system connectivity graph, an extremely efficient preconditioner can be derived from the 'range space metric', as opposed to the system coefficient matrix; because of the effectiveness of the preconditioner, preliminary studies indicate that the method can achieve performance rates that depend linearly upon the number of substructures, hence the title 'Order N'; and the method is non-assembling. Furthermore, the approach is promising as a potential parallel processing algorithm in that the method exhibits a fine parallel granularity suitable for a wide collection of combinations of physical system topologies/computer architectures; and the method is easily load balanced among processors, and does not rely upon system topology to induce parallelism.

Rapid Grain Size Reduction in the Upper Mantle at a Plate Boundary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kidder, S. B.; Scott, J.; Prior, D. J.; Lubicich, E. J.

2017-12-01

A few spinel peridotite xenoliths found near the Alpine Fault, New Zealand, exhibit a mylonitic texture and, locally, an extremely fine 30 micron grain size. The harzburgite xenoliths were emplaced in a 200 km-long elongate dike zone interpreted as a gigantic tension fracture or Reidel shear associated with Alpine Fault initiation 25 Ma. The presence of thin ( 1 mm) ultramylonite zones with px-ol phase mixing and fine grain sizes, minimal crustal-scale strain associated with the dike swarm, and the absence of mylonites at four of the five xenolith localities associated with the dike swarm indicate that upper mantle deformation was highly localized. Strings of small, recrystallized grains (planes in 3D) are found in the interiors of olivine porphyroclasts. In some cases, bands 1-2 grains thick are traced from the edges of olivine grains and terminate in their interiors. Thicker zones of recrystallized grains are also observed crossing olivine porphyroclasts without apparent offset of the unrecrystallized remnants of the porphyroclasts. We suggest a brittle-plastic origin for these features since the traditional recrystallization mechanisms associated with dislocation creep require much more strain than occurred within these porphyroclasts. Analogous microstructures in quartz and feldspar in mid-crust deformation zones are attributed to brittle-plastic processes. We hypothesize that such fine-grained zones were the precursors of the observed, higher-strain ultramylonite zones. Given the size of the new grains preserved in the porphyroclasts ( 100 micron) and a moho temperature > 650°C, grain growth calculations indicate that the observed brittle-plastic deformation occurred <10,000 yrs. prior to eruption. It is likely then that either brittle-plastic deformation was coeval with the ductile shearing occurring in the ultramylonite bands, or possibly, if deformation can be separated into brittle-plastic (early) and ductile (later) phases, that the entire localization process was very rapid (<10,000 yrs). In either case we interpret that semi-brittle deformation was a key process responsible for rapid localization in this initiating plate-scale mantle shear zone.

Interaction of gases with lunar materials. [surface properties of lunar fines, especially on exposure to water vapor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holmes, H. F.; Gammage, R. B.

1975-01-01

The surface properties of lunar fines were investigated. Results indicate that, for the most part, these properties are independent of the chemical composition and location of the samples on the lunar surface. The leaching of channels and pores by adsorbed water vapor is a distinguishing feature of their surface chemistry. The elements of air, if adsorbed in conjunction with water vapor or liquid water, severely impedes the leaching process. In the absence of air, liquid water is more effective than water vapor in attacking the grains. The characteristics of Apollo 17 orange fines were evaluated and compared with those of other samples. The interconnecting channels produced by water vapor adsorption were found to be wider than usual for other types of fines. Damage tracks caused by heavy cosmic ray nuclei and an unusually high halogen content might provide for stronger etching conditions upon exposure to water vapor.

Shock fabrics in fine-grained micrometeorites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suttle, M. D.; Genge, M. J.; Russell, S. S.

2017-10-01

The orientations of dehydration cracks and fracture networks in fine-grained, unmelted micrometeorites were analyzed using rose diagrams and entropy calculations. As cracks exploit pre-existing anisotropies, analysis of their orientation provides a mechanism with which to study the subtle petrofabrics preserved within fine-grained and amorphous materials. Both uniaxial and biaxial fabrics are discovered, often with a relatively wide spread in orientations (40°-60°). Brittle deformation cataclasis and rotated olivine grains are reported from a single micrometeorite. This paper provides the first evidence for impact-induced shock deformation in fine-grained micrometeorites. The presence of pervasive, low-grade shock features in CM chondrites and CM-like dust, anomalously low-density measurements for C-type asteroids, and impact experiments which suggest CM chondrites are highly prone to disruption all imply that CM parent bodies are unlikely to have remained intact and instead exist as a collection of loosely aggregated rubble-pile asteroids, composed of primitive shocked clasts.

Beyond Fine Tuning: Adding capacity to leverage few labels

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hodas, Nathan O.; Shaffer, Kyle J.; Yankov, Artem

2017-12-09

In this paper we present a technique to train neural network models on small amounts of data. Current methods for training neural networks on small amounts of rich data typically rely on strategies such as fine-tuning a pre-trained neural networks or the use of domain-specific hand-engineered features. Here we take the approach of treating network layers, or entire networks, as modules and combine pre-trained modules with untrained modules, to learn the shift in distributions between data sets. The central impact of using a modular approach comes from adding new representations to a network, as opposed to replacing representations via fine-tuning.more » Using this technique, we are able surpass results using standard fine-tuning transfer learning approaches, and we are also able to significantly increase performance over such approaches when using smaller amounts of data.« less

Learning Category-Specific Dictionary and Shared Dictionary for Fine-Grained Image Categorization.

PubMed

Gao, Shenghua; Tsang, Ivor Wai-Hung; Ma, Yi

2014-02-01

This paper targets fine-grained image categorization by learning a category-specific dictionary for each category and a shared dictionary for all the categories. Such category-specific dictionaries encode subtle visual differences among different categories, while the shared dictionary encodes common visual patterns among all the categories. To this end, we impose incoherence constraints among the different dictionaries in the objective of feature coding. In addition, to make the learnt dictionary stable, we also impose the constraint that each dictionary should be self-incoherent. Our proposed dictionary learning formulation not only applies to fine-grained classification, but also improves conventional basic-level object categorization and other tasks such as event recognition. Experimental results on five data sets show that our method can outperform the state-of-the-art fine-grained image categorization frameworks as well as sparse coding based dictionary learning frameworks. All these results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method.

Automatic Learning of Fine Operating Rules for Online Power System Security Control.

PubMed

Sun, Hongbin; Zhao, Feng; Wang, Hao; Wang, Kang; Jiang, Weiyong; Guo, Qinglai; Zhang, Boming; Wehenkel, Louis

2016-08-01

Fine operating rules for security control and an automatic system for their online discovery were developed to adapt to the development of smart grids. The automatic system uses the real-time system state to determine critical flowgates, and then a continuation power flow-based security analysis is used to compute the initial transfer capability of critical flowgates. Next, the system applies the Monte Carlo simulations to expected short-term operating condition changes, feature selection, and a linear least squares fitting of the fine operating rules. The proposed system was validated both on an academic test system and on a provincial power system in China. The results indicated that the derived rules provide accuracy and good interpretability and are suitable for real-time power system security control. The use of high-performance computing systems enables these fine operating rules to be refreshed online every 15 min.

THE "MUD VOLCANO," A STINKY THERMAL FEATURE ON THE GRAND ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

THE "MUD VOLCANO," A STINKY THERMAL FEATURE ON THE GRAND LOOP ROAD. ACIDIC HOT SPRINGS HAVE REDUCED THE UNDERLYING LAVA TO A FINE CLAY, PRODUCING AN AREA OF BOILING MUD. THE ODOR OF ROTTEN EGGS IS FROM HYDROGEN SULFIDE GAS. - Grand Loop Road, Forming circuit between Mammoth Hot Springs, Norris Junction, Madison Junction, Old Faithful, Mammoth, Park County, WY

Age, distribution, and significance within a sediment budget, of in-channel depositional surfaces in the Normanby River, Queensland, Australia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pietsch, T. J.; Brooks, A. P.; Spencer, J.; Olley, J. M.; Borombovits, D.

2015-06-01

We present the results of investigations into alluvial deposition in the catchment of the Normanby River, which flows into Princess Charlotte Bay (PCB) in the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon. Our focus is on the fine fraction (< ~ 63 μm) of alluvial deposits that sit above the sand and gravel bars of the channel floor, but below the expansive flat surface generally referred to as the floodplain. Variously described as benches, bank attached bars or inset or inner floodplains, these more or less flat-lying surfaces within the macro-channel have hitherto received little attention in sediment budgeting models. We use high resolution LiDAR based mapping combined with optical dating of exposures cut into these in-channel deposits to compare their aggradation rates with those found in other depositional zones in the catchment, namely the floodplain and coastal plain. In total 59 single grain OSL dates were produced across 21 stratigraphic profiles at 14 sites distributed though the 24 226 km2 catchment. In-channel storage in these inset features is a significant component of the contemporary fine sediment budget (i.e. recent decades/last century), annually equivalent to more than 50% of the volume entering the channel network from hillslopes and subsoil sources. Therefore, at the very least, in-channel storage of fine material needs to be incorporated into sediment budgeting exercises. Furthermore, deposition within the channel has occurred in multiple locations coincident in time with accelerated sediment production following European settlement. Generally, this has occurred on a subset of the features we have examined here, namely linear bench features low in the channel. This suggests that accelerated aggradation on in-channel depositional surfaces has been in part a response to accelerated erosion within the catchment. The entire contribution of ~ 370 kilotonnes per annum of fine sediment estimated to have been produced by alluvial gully erosion over the last ~ 100 years can be accounted for by that stored as in-channel alluvium. These features therefore can play an important role in mitigating the impact on the receiving water of accelerated erosion.

EIT: Solar corona synoptic observations from SOHO with an Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Delaboudiniere, J. P.; Gabriel, A. H.; Artzner, G. E.; Michels, D. J.; Dere, K. P.; Howard, R. A.; Catura, R.; Stern, R.; Lemen, J.; Neupert, W.

1988-01-01

The Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) of SOHO (solar and heliospheric observatory) will provide full disk images in emission lines formed at temperatures that map solar structures ranging from the chromospheric network to the hot magnetically confined plasma in the corona. Images in four narrow bandpasses will be obtained using normal incidence multilayered optics deposited on quadrants of a Ritchey-Chretien telescope. The EIT is capable of providing a uniform one arc second resolution over its entire 50 by 50 arc min field of view. Data from the EIT will be extremely valuable for identifying and interpreting the spatial and temperature fine structures of the solar atmosphere. Temporal analysis will provide information on the stability of these structures and identify dynamical processes. EIT images, issued daily, will provide the global corona context for aid in unifying the investigations and in forming the observing plans for SOHO coronal instruments.

Reducing the spectral index in supernatural inflation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Chia-Min; Cheung, Kingman

2009-04-01

Supernatural inflation is an attractive model based on just a flat direction with soft supersymmetry breaking mass terms in the framework of supersymmetry. The beauty of the model is that it needs no fine-tuning. However, the prediction of the spectral index is ns≳1, in contrast to experimental data. In this paper, we discuss supernatural inflation with the spectral index reduced to ns=0.96 without any fine-tuning, considering the general feature that a flat direction is lifted by a nonrenormalizable term with an A-term.

Characterization and Cytotoxicity of PM<0.2, PM0.2–2.5 and PM2.5–10 around MSWI in Shanghai, China

PubMed Central

Cao, Lingling; Zeng, Jianrong; Liu, Ke; Bao, Liangman; Li, Yan

2015-01-01

Background: The potential impact of municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI), which is an anthropogenic source of aerosol emissions, is of great public health concern. This study investigated the characterization and cytotoxic effects of ambient ultrafine particles (PM<0.2), fine particles (PM0.2–2.5) and coarse particles (PM2.5–10) collected around a municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) plant in the Pudong district of Shanghai. Methods: Mass concentrations of trace elements in particulate matter (PM) samples were determined using ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry). The cytotoxicity of sampled atmospheric PM was evaluated by cell viability and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in A549 cells. Result: The mass percentage of PM0.2–2.5 accounted for 72.91% of the total mass of PM. Crustal metals (Mg, Al, and Ti) were abundant in the coarse particles, while the anthropogenic elements (V, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb) were dominant in the fine particles. The enrichment factors of Zn, Cd and Pb in the fine and ultrafine particles were extremely high (>100). The cytotoxicity of the size-resolved particles was in the order of coarse particles < fine particles < ultrafine particles. Conclusions: Fine particles dominated the MSWI ambient particles. Emissions from the MSWI could bring contamination of anthropogenic elements (Zn, Cd and Pb) into ambient environment. The PM around the MSWI plant displayed an additive toxic effect, and the ultrafine and fine particles possessed higher biological toxicity than the coarse particles. PMID:25985309

Potential food allergens in wine: double-blind, placebo-controlled trial and basophil activation analysis.

PubMed

Rolland, Jennifer M; Apostolou, Effie; Deckert, Kirsten; de Leon, Maria P; Douglass, Jo A; Glaspole, Ian N; Bailey, Michael; Stockley, Creina S; O'Hehir, Robyn E

2006-09-01

Recent Australian and international legislation requires labeling of wines made by using the potentially allergenic food proteins casein, milk, egg white, or isinglass (fish-derived) where "there is a detectable residual processing aid." We investigated whether wines fined using these proteins or non-grape-derived tannins (tree-nut derived) can provoke significant clinical allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) in patients with confirmed immunoglobulin E-mediated relevant food allergy. A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed to determine whether allergic reactions followed consumption of Australian commercial wines fined using one or more of the legislation-targeted food proteins. In addition, allergenicity of a larger panel of these wines was evaluated by blood basophil activation. No anaphylaxis was induced by wine consumption. Three mild clinical reactions to protein-fined wine and two mild reactions to unfined wine occurred, but there was no statistically significant difference in reaction parameters between subject groups or between processing aids. No pattern of basophil activation correlated with wine type, processing aid, or subject group. Wines fined with egg white, isinglass, or non-grape-derived tannins present an extremely low risk of anaphylaxis to fish-, egg-, or peanut-allergic consumers. Although consumption of milk protein-fined wine did not induce anaphylaxis, there were insufficient subjects to determine statistically whether wines fined with milk proteins present a risk to the very rare milk-allergic consumers. In summary, the observed lack of anaphylaxis and basophil activation induced by wines made using the legislation-targeted food proteins according to good manufacturing practice suggests negligible residual food allergens in these wines.

Planetary Analogs in Antarctica: Icy Satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malin, M. C.

1985-01-01

As part of a study to provide semi-quantitative techniques to date past Antarctic glaciations, sponsored by the Antarctic Research Program, field observations pertinent to other planets were also acquired. The extremely diverse surface conditions, marked by extreme cold and large amounts of ice, provide potential terrain and process analogs to the icy satellites of Jupiter and Saturn. Thin ice tectonic features and explosion craters (on sea ice) and deformation features on thicker ice (glaciers) are specifically addressed.

Extracting features from protein sequences to improve deep extreme learning machine for protein fold recognition.

PubMed

Ibrahim, Wisam; Abadeh, Mohammad Saniee

2017-05-21

Protein fold recognition is an important problem in bioinformatics to predict three-dimensional structure of a protein. One of the most challenging tasks in protein fold recognition problem is the extraction of efficient features from the amino-acid sequences to obtain better classifiers. In this paper, we have proposed six descriptors to extract features from protein sequences. These descriptors are applied in the first stage of a three-stage framework PCA-DELM-LDA to extract feature vectors from the amino-acid sequences. Principal Component Analysis PCA has been implemented to reduce the number of extracted features. The extracted feature vectors have been used with original features to improve the performance of the Deep Extreme Learning Machine DELM in the second stage. Four new features have been extracted from the second stage and used in the third stage by Linear Discriminant Analysis LDA to classify the instances into 27 folds. The proposed framework is implemented on the independent and combined feature sets in SCOP datasets. The experimental results show that extracted feature vectors in the first stage could improve the performance of DELM in extracting new useful features in second stage. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mapping forest characteristics at fine resolution across large landscapes of the southeastern United States using NAIP imagery and FIA field plot data

Treesearch

John Hogland; Nathaniel Anderson; Joseph St. Peter; Jason Drake; Paul Medley

2018-01-01

Accurate information is important for effective management of natural resources. In the field of forestry, field measurements of forest characteristics such as species composition, basal area, and stand density are used to inform and evaluate management activities. Quantifying these metrics accurately across large landscapes in a meaningful way is extremely important...

JPRS Report, Science & Technology USSR: Chemistry

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-06-20

extremely water -intensive technological process that results in the pollution of natural waters by finely dispersed silt-and-clay suspensions that...against pollution . This review examines ways and means of reagent conditioning of circulating and waste waters during the development of placer deposits...in Water by Using Porous Sulfo Cation Exchange Resin [A. V Mamchenko, M.S. Novozhenyuk; KHIMIYA I TEKHNOLOGIYA VODY, Vol 13 No 1, Jan 91] ... 5

Upper ocean fine-scale features in synthetic aperture radar imagery. Part I: Simultaneous satellite and in-situ measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soloviev, A.; Maingot, C.; Matt, S.; Fenton, J.; Lehner, S.; Brusch, S.; Perrie, W. A.; Zhang, B.

2011-12-01

The new generation of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites provides high resolution images that open new opportunities for identifying and studying fine features in the upper ocean. The problem is, however, that SAR images of the sea surface can be affected by atmospheric phenomena (rain cells, fronts, internal waves, etc.). Implementation of in-situ techniques in conjunction with SAR is instrumental for discerning the origin of features on the image. This work is aimed at the interpretation of natural and artificial features in SAR images. These features can include fresh water lenses, sharp frontal interfaces, internal wave signatures, as well as slicks of artificial and natural origin. We have conducted field experiments in the summer of 2008 and 2010 and in the spring of 2011 to collect in-situ measurements coordinated with overpasses of the TerraSAR-X, RADARSAT-2, ALOS PALSAR, and COSMO SkyMed satellites. The in-situ sensors deployed in the Straits of Florida included a vessel-mounted sonar and CTD system to record near-surface data on stratification and frontal boundaries, a bottom-mounted Nortek AWAC system to gather information on currents and directional wave spectra, an ADCP mooring at a 240 m isobath, and a meteorological station. A nearby NOAA NEXRAD Doppler radar station provided a record of rainfall in the area. Controlled releases of menhaden fish oil were performed from our vessel before several satellite overpasses in order to evaluate the effect of surface active materials on visibility of sea surface features in SAR imagery under different wind-wave conditions. We found evidence in the satellite images of rain cells, squall lines, internal waves of atmospheric and possibly oceanic origin, oceanic frontal interfaces and submesoscale eddies, as well as anthropogenic signatures of ships and their wakes, and near-shore surface slicks. The combination of satellite imagery and coordinated in-situ measurements was helpful in interpreting fine-scale features on the sea surface observed in the SAR images and, in some cases, linking them to thermohaline features in the upper ocean. Finally, we have been able to reproduce SAR signatures of freshwater plumes and sharp frontal interfaces interacting with wind stress, as well as internal waves by combining hydrodynamic simulations with a radar imaging algorithm. The modeling results are presented in a companion paper (Matt et al., 2011).

A Piano Training Program to Improve Manual Dexterity and Upper Extremity Function in Chronic Stroke Survivors

PubMed Central

Villeneuve, Myriam; Penhune, Virginia; Lamontagne, Anouk

2014-01-01

Objective: Music-supported therapy was shown to induce improvements in motor skills in stroke survivors. Whether all stroke individuals respond similarly to the intervention and whether gains can be maintained over time remain unknown. We estimated the immediate and retention effects of a piano training program on upper extremity function in persons with chronic stroke. Methods: Thirteen stroke participants engaged in a 3-week piano training comprising supervised sessions (9 × 60 min) and home practice. Fine and gross manual dexterity, movement coordination, and functional use of the upper extremity were assessed at baseline, pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at a 3-week follow-up. Results: Significant improvements were observed for all outcomes at post-intervention and follow-up compared to pre-intervention scores. Larger magnitudes of change in manual dexterity and functional use of the upper extremity were associated with higher initial levels of motor recovery. Conclusion: Piano training can result in sustainable improvements in upper extremity function in chronic stroke survivors. Individuals with a higher initial level of motor recovery at baseline appear to benefit the most from this intervention. PMID:25202258

Predicting the Effective Elastic Properties of Polymer Bonded Explosives based on Micromechanical Methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jingcheng; Luo, Jingrun

2018-04-01

Due to the extremely high particle volume fraction (greater than 85%) and damage feature of polymer bonded explosives (PBXs), conventional micromechanical methods lead to inaccurate estimates on their effective elastic properties. According to their manufacture characteristics, a multistep approach based on micromechanical methods is proposed. PBXs are treated as pseudo poly-crystal materials consisting of equivalent composite particles (explosive crystals with binder coating), rather than two-phase composites composed of explosive particles and binder matrix. Moduli of composite spheres are obtained by generalized self-consistent method first, and the self-consistent method is modified to calculate the effective moduli of PBX. Defects and particle size distribution are considered by Mori-Tanaka method. Results show that when the multistep approach is applied to PBX 9501, estimates are far more accurate than the conventional micromechanical results. The bulk modulus is 5.75% higher, and shear modulus is 5.78% lower than the experimental values. Further analyses discover that while particle volume fraction and the binder's property have significant influences on the effective moduli of PBX, the moduli of particles present minor influences. Investigation of another particle size distribution indicates that the use of more fine particles will enhance the effective moduli of PBX.

Application of the SNoW machine learning paradigm to a set of transportation imaging problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paul, Peter; Burry, Aaron M.; Wang, Yuheng; Kozitsky, Vladimir

2012-01-01

Machine learning methods have been successfully applied to image object classification problems where there is clear distinction between classes and where a comprehensive set of training samples and ground truth are readily available. The transportation domain is an area where machine learning methods are particularly applicable, since the classification problems typically have well defined class boundaries and, due to high traffic volumes in most applications, massive roadway data is available. Though these classes tend to be well defined, the particular image noises and variations can be challenging. Another challenge is the extremely high accuracy typically required in most traffic applications. Incorrect assignment of fines or tolls due to imaging mistakes is not acceptable in most applications. For the front seat vehicle occupancy detection problem, classification amounts to determining whether one face (driver only) or two faces (driver + passenger) are detected in the front seat of a vehicle on a roadway. For automatic license plate recognition, the classification problem is a type of optical character recognition problem encompassing multiple class classification. The SNoW machine learning classifier using local SMQT features is shown to be successful in these two transportation imaging applications.

Tuberculous Lymphadenitis and Parotitis.

PubMed

Cataño, Juan Carlos; Robledo, Jaime

2016-12-01

Tuberculous lymphadenitis is the most common extrapulmonary manifestation of disseminated tuberculosis (TB). It is considered to be the local manifestation of the systemic disease that has disseminated to local lymph nodes, but a high index of suspicion is needed for the diagnosis, because there are several infectious and noninfectious diseases that can mimic the same clinical picture. In recent years, different diagnostic methods have been introduced, including fine-needle aspiration cytology, which has emerged as a simple outpatient diagnostic procedure that replaced the complete excisional node biopsy, and a number of molecular methods which have greatly improved diagnostic accuracy. This chapter covers the most actual knowledge in terms of epidemiology, clinical manifestations, pathogenesis, and treatment and emphasizes current trends in diagnosis of tuberculous lymphadenitis. TB parotid gland involvement is extremely rare, even in countries in which TB is endemic. Because of the clinical similarity, parotid malignancy and other forms of parotid inflammatory disease always take priority over the rarely encountered TB parotitis when it comes to differential diagnosis. As a result, clinicians often fail to make a timely diagnosis of TB parotitis when facing a patient with a slowly growing parotid lump. This chapter highlights the most important features of this uncommon disease.

Lab experiments investigating astrophysical jet physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bellan, Paul

2014-10-01

Dynamics relevant to astrophysical plasmas is being investigated in lab experiments having similar physics and topology, but much smaller time and space scales. High speed movies and numerical simulations both show that highly collimated MHD-driven plasma flows are a critical feature; these collimated flows can be considered to be a lab version of an astrophysical jet. Having both axial and azimuthal magnetic fields, the jet is effectively an axially lengthening plasma-confining flux tube with embedded helical magnetic field (flux rope). The jet velocity is in good agreement with an MHD acceleration model. Axial stagnation of the jet compresses embedded azimuthal magnetic flux and so results in jet self-collimation. Jets kink when they breach the Kruskal-Shafranov stability limit. The lateral acceleration of a sufficiently strong kink can provide an effective gravity which provides the environment for a spontaneously-developing, fine-scale, extremely fast Rayleigh-Taylor instability that erodes the current channel to be smaller than the ion skin depth. This cascade from the ideal MHD scale of the kink to the non-MHD ion skin depth scale can result in a fast magnetic reconnection whereby the jet breaks off from its source electrode. Supported by USDOE and NSF.

UWB Technology and Applications on Space Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ngo, Phong; Phan, Chau; Gross, Julia; Dusl, John; Ni, Jianjun; Rafford, Melinda

2006-01-01

Ultra-wideband (UWB), also known as impulse or carrier-free radio technology, is one promising new technology. In February 2002, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved the deployment of this technology. It is increasingly recognized that UWB technology holds great potential to provide significant benefits in many terrestrial and space applications such as precise positioning/tracking and high data rate mobile wireless communications. This talk presents an introduction to UWB technology and some applications on space exploration. UWB is characterized by several uniquely attractive features, such as low impact on other RF systems due to its extremely low power spectral densities, immunity to interference from narrow band RF systems due to its ultra-wide bandwidth, multipath immunity to fading due to ample multipath diversity, capable of precise positioning due to fine time resolution, capable of high data rate multi-channel performance. The related FCC regulations, IEEE standardization efforts and industry activities also will be addressed in this talk. For space applications, some projects currently under development at NASA Johnson Space Center will be introduced. These include the UWB integrated communication and tracking system for Lunar/Mars rover and astronauts, UWB-RFID ISS inventory tracking, and UWB-TDOA close-in high resolution tracking for potential applications on robonaut.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chesny, D. L.; Oluseyi, H. M.; Orange, N. B.

Ubiquitous solar atmospheric coronal and transition region bright points (BPs) are compact features overlying strong concentrations of magnetic flux. Here, we utilize high-cadence observations from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory to provide the first observations of extreme ultraviolet quiet-Sun (QS) network BP activity associated with sigmoidal structuring. To our knowledge, this previously unresolved fine structure has never been associated with such small-scale QS events. This QS event precedes a bi-directional jet in a compact, low-energy, and low-temperature environment, where evidence is found in support of the typical fan-spine magnetic field topology. As in active regionsmore » and micro-sigmoids, the sigmoidal arcade is likely formed via tether-cutting reconnection and precedes peak intensity enhancements and eruptive activity. Our QS BP sigmoid provides a new class of small-scale structuring exhibiting self-organized criticality that highlights a multi-scaled self-similarity between large-scale, high-temperature coronal fields and the small-scale, lower-temperature QS network. Finally, our QS BP sigmoid elevates arguments for coronal heating contributions from cooler atmospheric layers, as this class of structure may provide evidence favoring mass, energy, and helicity injections into the heliosphere.« less

Enceladus: three-act play and current state

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luan, J.; Goldreich, P.

2017-12-01

Eccentricity (e) growth as Enceladus migrates deeper into mean motion resonance with Dione results in increased tidal heating. As the bottom of the ice shell melts, the rate of tidal heating jumps and runaway melting ensues. At the end of run-away melting, the shell's thickness has fallen below the value at which the frequency of free libration equals the orbital mean motion and e has damped to well below its current value. Subsequently, both the shell thickness and e partake in a limit cycle. As e damps toward its minimum value, the shell's thickness asymptotically approaches its resonant value from below. After minimum e, the shell thickens quickly and e grows even faster. This cycle is likely to have been repeated multiple times in the past. Currently, e is much smaller than its equilibrium value corresponding to the shell thickness. Physical libration resonance resolves this mystery, it ensures that the low-e and medium-thickness state is present for most of the time between consecutive limit cycles. It is a robust scenario that avoids fine tuning or extreme parameter choice, and naturally produces episodic stages of high heating, consistent with softening of topographical features on Enceladus.

Erosion of ejecta at Meteor Crater, Arizona

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grant, John A.; Schultz, Peter H.

1993-01-01

New methods for estimating erosion at Meteor Crater, Arizona, indicate that continuous ejecta deposits beyond 1/4-1/2 crater radii from the rim have been lowered less than 1 m on the average. This conclusion is based on the results of two approaches: coarsening of unweathered ejecta into surface lag deposits and calculation of the sediment budget within a drainage basin on the ejecta. Preserved ejecta morphologies beneath thin alluvium revealed by ground-penetrating radar provide qualitative support for the derived estimates. Although slightly greater erosion of less resistant ejecta locally has occurred, such deposits were limited in extent, particularly beyond 0.25R-0.5R from the present rim. Subtle but preserved primary ejecta features further support our estimate of minimal erosion of ejecta since the crater formed about 50,000 years ago. Unconsolidated deposits formed during other sudden extreme events exhibit similarly low erosion over the same time frame; the common factor is the presence of large fragments or large fragments in a matrix of finer debris. At Meteor Crater, fluvial and eolian processes remove surrounding fines leaving behind a surface lag of coarse-grained ejecta fragments that armor surfaces and slow vertical lowering.

Dynamic Relaxation: A Technique for Detailed Thermo-Elastic Structural Analysis of Transportation Structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shoukry, Samir N.; William, Gergis W.; Riad, Mourad Y.; McBride, Kevyn C.

2006-08-01

Dynamic relaxation is a technique developed to solve static problems through an explicit integration in finite element. The main advantage of such a technique is the ability to solve a large problem in a relatively short time compared with the traditional implicit techniques, especially when using nonlinear material models. This paper describes the use of such a technique in analyzing large transportation structures as dowel jointed concrete pavements and 306-m-long, reinforced concrete bridge superstructure under the effect of temperature variations. The main feature of the pavement model is the detailed modeling of dowel bars and their interfaces with the surrounding concrete using extremely fine mesh of solid elements, while in the bridge structure it is the detailed modeling of the girder-deck interface as well as the bracing members between the girders. The 3DFE results were found to be in a good agreement with experimentally measured data obtained from an instrumented pavements sections and a highway bridge constructed in West Virginia. Thus, such a technique provides a good tool for analyzing the response of large structures to static loads in a fraction of the time required by traditional, implicit finite element methods.

Comparison of pore space textural characteristics of natural stone exposed to real weathering environment and/or subjected to accelerated weathering tests: implications for durability assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prikryl, Richard; Weishauptová, Zuzana

2017-04-01

One of the key questions in the debate on durability of natural stone is related to the relevance of accelerated weathering tests for durability assessments, specifically whether similar material responses can be achieved? In the recent study, specimens of opuka stone (extremely fine-grained clayey-calcareous silicite) was subjected to accelerated weathering tests in a climatic chamber (sulphur dioxide atmosphere, freezing/thawing). After completion of certain number of cycles, pore space textural characteristics by means of mercury porosimetry were studied. These data were compared with porosimetric data obtained from a piece of stone, sampled from a carved stone altar located in the interior of the St. Vitus Cathedral (Prague, Czech Republic) which was affected by 150-years lasting indoor decay processes (cyclic themohygric stresses due to variable indoor atmospheric conditions). Interestingly, the pore space textural characteristics of these two sets of specimens are closely related and show some distinct features different from fresh, non-weathered material. Our observation therefore supports relevance of some accelerated weathering simulations; however, conditions of these simulations must be based on parameters of real environment.

A study of nitrogen incorporation in pyramidal site-controlled quantum dots

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

We present the results of a study of nitrogen incorporation in metalorganic-vapour-phase epitaxy-grown site-controlled quantum dots (QDs). We report for the first time on a significant incorporation (approximately 0.3%), producing a noteworthy red shift (at least 50 meV) in some of our samples. Depending on the level of nitrogen incorporation/exposure, strong modifications of the optical features are found (variable distribution of the emission homogeneity, fine-structure splitting, few-particle effects). We discuss our results, especially in relation to a specific reproducible sample which has noticeable features: the usual pattern of the excitonic transitions is altered and the fine-structure splitting is suppressed to vanishing values. Distinctively, nitrogen incorporation can be achieved without detriment to the optical quality, as confirmed by narrow linewidths and photon correlation spectroscopy. PMID:22029752

The influence of fine-scale habitat features on regional variation in population performance of alpine White-tailed Ptarmigan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fedy, B.; Martin, K.

2011-01-01

It is often assumed (explicitly or implicitly) that animals select habitat features to maximize fitness. However, there is often a mismatch between preferred habitats and indices of individual and population measures of performance. We examined the influence of fine-scale habitat selection on the overall population performance of the White-tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura), an alpine specialist, in two subdivided populations whose habitat patches are configured differently. The central region of Vancouver Island, Canada, has more continuous and larger habitat patches than the southern region. In 2003 and 2004, using paired logistic regression between used (n = 176) and available (n = 324) sites, we identified food availability, distance to standing water, and predator cover as preferred habitat components . We then quantified variation in population performance in the two regions in terms of sex ratio, age structure (n = 182 adults and yearlings), and reproductive success (n = 98 females) on the basis of 8 years of data (1995-1999, 2002-2004). Region strongly influenced females' breeding success, which, unsuccessful hens included, was consistently higher in the central region (n = 77 females) of the island than in the south (n = 21 females, P = 0.01). The central region also had a much higher proportion of successful hens (87%) than did the south (55%, P < 0.001). In light of our findings, we suggest that population performance is influenced by a combination of fine-scale habitat features and coarse-scale habitat configuration. ?? The Cooper Ornithological Society 2011.

Role of storms and forest practices in sedimentation of an Oregon Coast Range lake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson, K.; Hatten, J. A.; Wheatcroft, R. A.; Guerrero, F. J.

2014-12-01

The design of better management practices in forested watersheds to face climate change and the associated increase in the frequency of extreme events requires a better understanding of watershed responses to extreme events in the past and also under management regimes. One of the most sensitive watershed processes affected is sediment yield. Lake sediments record events which occur in a watershed and provide an opportunity to examine the interaction of storms and forest management practices in the layers of the stratigraphy. We hypothesize that timber harvesting and road building since the 1900s has resulted in increases in sedimentation; however, the passage of the Oregon Forest Practices Act (OFPA) in 1972 has led to a decrease in sedimentation. Sediment cores were taken at Loon Lake in the Oregon Coast Range. The 32-m deep lake captures sediment from a catchment highly impacted by recent land use and episodic Pacific storms. We can use sedimentological tools to measure changes in sediment production as motivated by extreme floods before settlement, during a major timber harvesting period, and after installation of forestry Best Management Practices. Quantification of changes in particle size and elemental composition (C, N, C/N) throughout the cores can elucidate changes in watershed response to extreme events, as can changes in layer thickness. Age control in the cores is being established by Cesium-137 and radiocarbon dating. Given the instrumental meteorological data and decadal climate reconstructions, we will disentangle climate driven signals from changes in land use practices. The sediment shows distinct laminations and varying thickness of layers throughout the cores. Background deposition is composed of thin layers (<0.5 cm) of fine silts and clays, punctuated by thicker layers (3-25 cm) every 10 to 75 cm. These thick layers consist of distinctly textured units, generally fining upward. We interpret the thick layers in Loon Lake to be deposited by sediment-producing floods throughout much of the 1500-year lifespan of this lake. We will explore the relationship between sedimentation, land use, and climate forcing events to determine if the OFPA is having an effect on reducing sedimentation rates as a result of extreme magnitude storm events.

Classification of pulmonary pathology from breath sounds using the wavelet packet transform and an extreme learning machine.

PubMed

Palaniappan, Rajkumar; Sundaraj, Kenneth; Sundaraj, Sebastian; Huliraj, N; Revadi, S S

2017-06-08

Auscultation is a medical procedure used for the initial diagnosis and assessment of lung and heart diseases. From this perspective, we propose assessing the performance of the extreme learning machine (ELM) classifiers for the diagnosis of pulmonary pathology using breath sounds. Energy and entropy features were extracted from the breath sound using the wavelet packet transform. The statistical significance of the extracted features was evaluated by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The extracted features were inputted into the ELM classifier. The maximum classification accuracies obtained for the conventional validation (CV) of the energy and entropy features were 97.36% and 98.37%, respectively, whereas the accuracies obtained for the cross validation (CRV) of the energy and entropy features were 96.80% and 97.91%, respectively. In addition, maximum classification accuracies of 98.25% and 99.25% were obtained for the CV and CRV of the ensemble features, respectively. The results indicate that the classification accuracy obtained with the ensemble features was higher than those obtained with the energy and entropy features.

A Coarse-to-Fine Geometric Scale-Invariant Feature Transform for Large Size High Resolution Satellite Image Registration

PubMed Central

Chang, Xueli; Du, Siliang; Li, Yingying; Fang, Shenghui

2018-01-01

Large size high resolution (HR) satellite image matching is a challenging task due to local distortion, repetitive structures, intensity changes and low efficiency. In this paper, a novel matching approach is proposed for the large size HR satellite image registration, which is based on coarse-to-fine strategy and geometric scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT). In the coarse matching step, a robust matching method scale restrict (SR) SIFT is implemented at low resolution level. The matching results provide geometric constraints which are then used to guide block division and geometric SIFT in the fine matching step. The block matching method can overcome the memory problem. In geometric SIFT, with area constraints, it is beneficial for validating the candidate matches and decreasing searching complexity. To further improve the matching efficiency, the proposed matching method is parallelized using OpenMP. Finally, the sensing image is rectified to the coordinate of reference image via Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) transformation. Experiments are designed to test the performance of the proposed matching method. The experimental results show that the proposed method can decrease the matching time and increase the number of matching points while maintaining high registration accuracy. PMID:29702589

Fine-needle aspiration cytology of malignant hemangiopericytomas with ultrastructural and flow cytometric analyses.

PubMed

Geisinger, K R; Silverman, J F; Cappellari, J O; Dabbs, D J

1990-07-01

A hemangiopericytoma (HPC) is an uncommon soft-tissue neoplasm that may arise in many body sites. The cytologic features of fine-needle aspirates (FNAs) of HPCs have only rarely been described in the literature. We examined FNAs of malignant HPCs from the head and neck region (three) and the retroperitoneum (one) in four adults (aged 38 to 83 years). All four FNAs yielded cellular specimens that consisted of uninuclear tumor cells with high nuclear-cytoplasmic ratios. The cytomorphological spectrum included nuclei that were oval to elongate and had very finely granular, evenly distributed chromatin with one or two small but distinct nucleoli. Hemangiopericytomas yield aspirates that may be considered malignant and may suggest sarcoma. Histologically, all four neoplasms manifested high mitotic activity. The ultrastructural features of all four tumors were supportive of the diagnosis of HPC. Although a specific primary diagnosis of HPC on FNA of a soft-tissue mass is unlikely, cytologic analysis may allow diagnosis of recurrent or metastatic HPC. We were able to perform flow cytometric determinations of tumor DNA content on three of the resected neoplasms. In two, an aneuploid pattern was found, including the neoplasm with the most marked pleomorphism in the FNA. The third was diploid.

A Narrative Evaluation of Mandarin-Speaking Children With Language Impairment.

PubMed

Hao, Ying; Sheng, Li; Zhang, Yiwen; Jiang, Fan; de Villiers, Jill; Lee, Wendy; Liu, Xueman Lucy

2018-02-15

We aimed to study narrative skills in Mandarin-speaking children with language impairment (LI) to compare with children with LI speaking Indo-European languages. Eighteen Mandarin-speaking children with LI (mean age 6;2 [years;months]) and 18 typically developing (TD) age controls told 3 stories elicited using the Mandarin Expressive Narrative Test (de Villiers & Liu, 2014). We compared macrostructure-evaluating descriptions of characters, settings, initiating events, internal responses,plans, actions, and consequences. We also studied general microstructure, including productivity, lexical diversity, syntactic complexity, and grammaticality. In addition, we compared the use of 6 fine-grained microstructure elements that evaluate particular Mandarin linguistic features. Children with LI exhibited weaknesses in 5 macrostructure elements, lexical diversity, syntactic complexity, and 3 Mandarin-specific, fine-grained microstructure elements. Children with LI and TD controls demonstrated comparable performance on 2 macrostructure elements, productivity, grammaticality, and the remaining 3 fine-grained microstructure features. Similarities and differences are noted in narrative profiles of children with LI who speak Mandarin versus those who speak Indo-European languages. The results are consistent with the view that profiles of linguistic deficits are shaped by the ambient language. Clinical implications are discussed.

Pin stripe lamination: A distinctive feature of modern and ancient eolian sediments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fryberger, S.G.; Schenk, C.J.

1988-01-01

Pin stripe laminations are a distinctive feature of modern and ancient eolian sediments. In sets of eolian ripple (or translatent) strata they represent deposition of silt and very fine sand in the troughs of the advancing wind ripples. In sets of avalanche strata they probably result from the downward settling of fine sand and silt within the moving avalanche to the interface of moving and unmoving sands. Wind tunnel experiments suggest that pin stripe laminations can also form in grainfall deposits. The textural segregation associated with deposition of the fine layers in most cases leads to early cementation along and near the finest sand and silt comprising the pin stripe lamination. The pin stripe effect seen in outcrops is usually due to resistance to weathering along such cemented zones. The cementation of the pin stripe laminations can occur early in the history of diagenesis and thus may provide clues to the post-depositional history of the rock. Pin stripe laminations in many instances represent the sequestering of the small population of ultrafine sediment present in most eolian depositional systems. They may prove useful in the recognition of ancient eolian sediments. ?? 1988.

Apollo 15 coarse fines (4-10 mm): Sample classification, description and inventory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powell, B. N.

1972-01-01

A particle by particle binocular microscopic examination of all of the Apollo 15 4-10 mm fines samples is reported. These particles are classified according to their macroscopic lithologic features in order to provide a basis for sample allocations and future study. The relatively large size of these particles renders them too vaulable to permit treatment along with the other bulk fines, yet they are too small (and numerous) to practically receive full individual descriptive treatment as given the larger rock samples. This examination, classification and description of subgroups represents a compromise treatment. In most cases and for many types of investigation the individual particles should be large enough to permit the application of more than one type of analysis.

Multiclass Classification for the Differential Diagnosis on the ADHD Subtypes Using Recursive Feature Elimination and Hierarchical Extreme Learning Machine: Structural MRI Study

PubMed Central

Qureshi, Muhammad Naveed Iqbal; Min, Beomjun; Jo, Hang Joon; Lee, Boreom

2016-01-01

The classification of neuroimaging data for the diagnosis of certain brain diseases is one of the main research goals of the neuroscience and clinical communities. In this study, we performed multiclass classification using a hierarchical extreme learning machine (H-ELM) classifier. We compared the performance of this classifier with that of a support vector machine (SVM) and basic extreme learning machine (ELM) for cortical MRI data from attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) patients. We used 159 structural MRI images of children from the publicly available ADHD-200 MRI dataset. The data consisted of three types, namely, typically developing (TDC), ADHD-inattentive (ADHD-I), and ADHD-combined (ADHD-C). We carried out feature selection by using standard SVM-based recursive feature elimination (RFE-SVM) that enabled us to achieve good classification accuracy (60.78%). In this study, we found the RFE-SVM feature selection approach in combination with H-ELM to effectively enable the acquisition of high multiclass classification accuracy rates for structural neuroimaging data. In addition, we found that the most important features for classification were the surface area of the superior frontal lobe, and the cortical thickness, volume, and mean surface area of the whole cortex. PMID:27500640

Variability In Long-Wave Runup as a Function of Nearshore Bathymetric Features

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dunkin, Lauren McNeill

Beaches and barrier islands are vulnerable to extreme storm events, such as hurricanes, that can cause severe erosion and overwash to the system. Having dunes and a wide beach in front of coastal infrastructure can provide protection during a storm, but the influence that nearshore bathymetric features have in protecting the beach and barrier island system is not completely understood. The spatial variation in nearshore features, such as sand bars and beach cusps, can alter nearshore hydrodynamics, including wave setup and runup. The influence of bathymetric features on long-wave runup can be used in evaluating the vulnerability of coastal regionsmore » to erosion and dune overtopping, evaluating the changing morphology, and implementing plans to protect infrastructure. In this thesis, long-wave runup variation due to changing bathymetric features as determined with the numerical model XBeach is quantified (eXtreme Beach behavior model). Wave heights are analyzed to determine the energy through the surfzone. XBeach assumes that coastal erosion at the land-sea interface is dominated by bound long-wave processes. Several hydrodynamic conditions are used to force the numerical model. The XBeach simulation results suggest that bathymetric irregularity induces significant changes in the extreme long-wave runup at the beach and the energy indicator through the surfzone.« less

Multiclass Classification for the Differential Diagnosis on the ADHD Subtypes Using Recursive Feature Elimination and Hierarchical Extreme Learning Machine: Structural MRI Study.

PubMed

Qureshi, Muhammad Naveed Iqbal; Min, Beomjun; Jo, Hang Joon; Lee, Boreom

2016-01-01

The classification of neuroimaging data for the diagnosis of certain brain diseases is one of the main research goals of the neuroscience and clinical communities. In this study, we performed multiclass classification using a hierarchical extreme learning machine (H-ELM) classifier. We compared the performance of this classifier with that of a support vector machine (SVM) and basic extreme learning machine (ELM) for cortical MRI data from attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) patients. We used 159 structural MRI images of children from the publicly available ADHD-200 MRI dataset. The data consisted of three types, namely, typically developing (TDC), ADHD-inattentive (ADHD-I), and ADHD-combined (ADHD-C). We carried out feature selection by using standard SVM-based recursive feature elimination (RFE-SVM) that enabled us to achieve good classification accuracy (60.78%). In this study, we found the RFE-SVM feature selection approach in combination with H-ELM to effectively enable the acquisition of high multiclass classification accuracy rates for structural neuroimaging data. In addition, we found that the most important features for classification were the surface area of the superior frontal lobe, and the cortical thickness, volume, and mean surface area of the whole cortex.

Applications of Precipitation Feature Databases from GPM core and constellation Satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, C.

2017-12-01

Using the observations from Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) core and constellation satellites, global precipitation was quantitatively described from the perspective of precipitation systems and their properties. This presentation will introduce the development of precipitation feature databases, and several scientific questions that have been tackled using this database, including the topics of global snow precipitation, extreme intensive convection, hail storms, extreme precipitation, and microphysical properties derived with dual frequency radars at the top of convective cores. As more and more observations of constellation satellites become available, it is anticipated that the precipitation feature approach will help to address a large variety of scientific questions in the future. For anyone who is interested, all the current precipitation feature databases are freely open to public at: http://atmos.tamucc.edu/trmm/.

High-performance Chinese multiclass traffic sign detection via coarse-to-fine cascade and parallel support vector machine detectors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Faliang; Liu, Chunsheng

2017-09-01

The high variability of sign colors and shapes in uncontrolled environments has made the detection of traffic signs a challenging problem in computer vision. We propose a traffic sign detection (TSD) method based on coarse-to-fine cascade and parallel support vector machine (SVM) detectors to detect Chinese warning and danger traffic signs. First, a region of interest (ROI) extraction method is proposed to extract ROIs using color contrast features in local regions. The ROI extraction can reduce scanning regions and save detection time. For multiclass TSD, we propose a structure that combines a coarse-to-fine cascaded tree with a parallel structure of histogram of oriented gradients (HOG) + SVM detectors. The cascaded tree is designed to detect different types of traffic signs in a coarse-to-fine process. The parallel HOG + SVM detectors are designed to do fine detection of different types of traffic signs. The experiments demonstrate the proposed TSD method can rapidly detect multiclass traffic signs with different colors and shapes in high accuracy.

Crossed asymmetry in Russell-Silver syndrome.

PubMed Central

Qazi, Q H; Kassner, E G; Ganapathy, C

1977-01-01

Since the initial report by Silver et al (1953), more than 50 examples of the Russell-Silver syndrome have been reported. Unilateral congenital asymmetry of the extremities has been considered one of the major features of this disorder (Silver, 1964). We recently observed a child with otherwise typical features of the Russell-Silver syndrome who had enlargement of the right hand and of the left lower extremity. We know of no other recorded example of crossed asymmetry in this clinical entity. Images PMID:839508

New infrared telescopic observation of Vesta

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palomba, E.; D'Aversa, E.; Sato, T.; Longobardo, A.; Aoki, S.; Sindoni, G.; Oliva, F.

2017-09-01

In this work we present new telescopic observations of the Vesta asteroid made at the Subaru Telescope by using the COMICS IR spectrometer. We were able to obtain 5 different observations in 5 day, at two different epochs. The obtained spectra do not exhibit Reststrahlen bands and show only weak features attributable to the Christiansen peak and to the transparency feature compatible with a fine grain size regolith.

A general gridding, discretization, and coarsening methodology for modeling flow in porous formations with discrete geological features

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karimi-Fard, M.; Durlofsky, L. J.

2016-10-01

A comprehensive framework for modeling flow in porous media containing thin, discrete features, which could be high-permeability fractures or low-permeability deformation bands, is presented. The key steps of the methodology are mesh generation, fine-grid discretization, upscaling, and coarse-grid discretization. Our specialized gridding technique combines a set of intersecting triangulated surfaces by constructing approximate intersections using existing edges. This procedure creates a conforming mesh of all surfaces, which defines the internal boundaries for the volumetric mesh. The flow equations are discretized on this conforming fine mesh using an optimized two-point flux finite-volume approximation. The resulting discrete model is represented by a list of control-volumes with associated positions and pore-volumes, and a list of cell-to-cell connections with associated transmissibilities. Coarse models are then constructed by the aggregation of fine-grid cells, and the transmissibilities between adjacent coarse cells are obtained using flow-based upscaling procedures. Through appropriate computation of fracture-matrix transmissibilities, a dual-continuum representation is obtained on the coarse scale in regions with connected fracture networks. The fine and coarse discrete models generated within the framework are compatible with any connectivity-based simulator. The applicability of the methodology is illustrated for several two- and three-dimensional examples. In particular, we consider gas production from naturally fractured low-permeability formations, and transport through complex fracture networks. In all cases, highly accurate solutions are obtained with significant model reduction.

Direct evidence of hydration into mantle during shearing below a trasform fault: Prince Edward transform fault, Southwest Indian Ridge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michibayashi, K.; Kakihata, Y.; Dick, H. J.

2017-12-01

Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) is located to the southwest of Rodriguez Triple Junction, where three Indian ocean ridges meet (Zhou & Dick, 2013, Nature). SWIR is one of the slowest spreading ocean ridges in the world. In this study, we studied microstructural development of 21 peridotite samples obtained from Prince Edward transform fault of SWIR by PROTEA5 cruise in 1983. The peridotites consist dominantly of olivine, orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene with minor amounts of amphibole and plagioclase as well as secondary minerals such as serpentine and magnetite. The peridotites were classified into four groups based on their microstructures: 3 ultramylonites mostly consisting of extremely fine crystals (3-5µm), 13 heterogeneous tectonites consisting of coarse-grained crystals and fine-grained matrix, 1 cataclasite and 4 intensely serpentinized peridotites. Olivine Mg# is 0.90-0.91 and spinel Cr# is 0.1-0.35. Amphibole crystals have chemical compositions of tremolite and magnesio-hornblende and they were intensely deformed within the ultramylonites and the heterogeneous tectonites, indicating that they have occurred before or during intense shearing in mantle. Moreover, extremely fine grain sizes of olivine and microboudin textures in both pyroxene and spinel crystals suggest that these peridotites have been sheared under high stress conditions. Furthermore, olivine crystal-fabrics within the amphibole bearing peridotites have B and E types that could be developed under hydrous conditions, whereas olivine fabrics within the other peridotites have A and D types that could be developed under anhydrous conditions (Karato et al., 2008, Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci.). Consequently, the petrophysical characteristics of peridotites in this study indicate that the uppermost mantle below the Prince Edward transform fault has been locally but intensely hydrated during shearing due to transform movement.

The Role of Authigenic Volcanic Ash in Marine Sediment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scudder, R.; McKinley, C. C.; Thomas, D. J.; Murray, R. W.

2016-12-01

Marine sediments are a fundamental archive of the history of weathering and erosion, biological productivity, volcanic activity, patterns of deep-water formation and circulation, and a multitude of other earth, ocean, and atmosphere processes. In particular, the record and consequences of volcanic eruptions have long fascinated humanity. Volcanic ash layers are often visually stunning, and can have thicknesses of 10s of cm or more. While the ash layer records are of great importance by themselves, we are missing a key piece of information-that of the very fined grained size fractions. Dispersed ash is the very fine grained-component that has either been mixed into the bulk sediment by bioturbation, or is deposited from subaqueous eruptions, erosion of terrestrial deposits, general input during time periods of elevated global volcanism, or other mechanisms, plays an important role in the marine sediment. The presence of dispersed ash in the marine record has previously been relatively over-looked as it is difficult to identify petrographically due to its commonly extremely fine grain size and/or alteration to authigenic clay. The dispersed ash, either altered or unaltered, is extremely difficult to differentiate from detrital/terrigenous/authigenic clay, as they are all "aluminosilicates". Here we apply a combined geochemical, isotopic, and statistical technique that enables us to resolve volcanic from detrital terrigenous inputs at DSDP/ODP/IODP sites from both the Brazil Margin and the Northwest Pacific Oceans. Incorporating the combined geochemical/statistical techniques with radiogenic isotope records allows us to address paleoceanographic questions in addition to studies of the effect of sediment fluxes on carbon cycling, the relationship between volcanic ash and biological productivity of the open ocean and nutrient availability for subseafloor microbial life.

Evaluation of high-density, multi-contact nerve cuffs for activation of grasp muscles in monkeys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brill, N. A.; Naufel, S. N.; Polasek, K.; Ethier, C.; Cheesborough, J.; Agnew, S.; Miller, L. E.; Tyler, D. J.

2018-06-01

Objective. The objective of this work was to evaluate whether nerve cuffs can selectively activate hand muscles for functional electrical stimulation (FES). FES typically involves identifying and implanting electrodes in many individual muscles, but nerve cuffs only require implantation at a single site around the nerve. This method is surgically more attractive. Nerve cuffs may also more effectively stimulate intrinsic hand muscles, which are difficult to implant and stimulate without spillover to adjacent muscles. Approach. To evaluate its ability to selectively activate muscles, we implanted and tested the flat interface nerve electrode (FINE), which is designed to selectively stimulate peripheral nerves that innervate multiple muscles (Tyler and Durand 2002 IEEE Trans. Neural Syst. Rehabil. Eng. 10 294-303). We implanted FINEs on the nerves and bipolar intramuscular wires for recording compound muscle action potentials (CMAPs) from up to 20 muscles in each arm of six monkeys. We then collected recruitment curves while the animals were anesthetized. Main result. A single FINE implanted on an upper extremity nerve in the monkey can selectively activate muscles or small groups of muscles to produce multiple, independent hand functions. Significance. FINE cuffs can serve as a viable supplement to intramuscular electrodes in FES systems, where they can better activate intrinsic and extrinsic muscles with lower currents and less extensive surgery.

Interannual variability of sorted bedforms in the coastal German Bight (SE North Sea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mielck, F.; Holler, P.; Bürk, D.; Hass, H. C.

2015-12-01

Sorted bedforms are ubiquitous on the inner continental shelves worldwide. They are described as spatially-grain-size-sorted features consisting of small rippled medium-to-coarse sand and can remain stable for decades. However, the knowledge about their genesis and development is still fragmentary. For this study, a representative investigation area (water depth<15 m) located on the shelf west of the island of Sylt (SE North Sea, Germany) was periodically surveyed with hydroacoustic means (i.e. sidescan sonar, multibeam echo sounder, and sub-bottom profiler) during 2010-2014. Since this area is influenced by tidal and wind-driven currents, the aim was to detect and examine interannual variabilities in the characteristics of the prevailing sorted bedforms. Our measurements reveal sinuous stripes of rippled medium sand which are embedded in shallow symmetrical depressions. These domains are surrounded by relatively smooth fine-sand areas. These sorted bedforms were identified as flow-transverse features that are maintained by ebb and flood currents of almost equal strengths that flow in opposite directions. This bidirectional flow field generates sharp boundaries between the medium- and fine-sand domains in both current directions. Further to the north, where flood currents are dominant, asymmetric sorted bedforms were detected which show sharp boundaries only in flood-current direction. Comparisons between the measurements of the different years show no significant variations in morphology and distribution of the sorted bedforms. However, variations of the boundaries between the medium and the fine-sand domains were observed. Additionally, new minor sorted bedforms and rippled excavation marks as well as new fine-sand areas developed and disappeared occasionally. It can be supposed that such sediment winnowing and focusing processes take place during periodically recurring storm surges, which change the shapes of the features. Moreover, variations in alignments and sizes of the small ripple formations were detected. They seem to indicate the directions and intensities of previous storm events.

View-invariant gait recognition method by three-dimensional convolutional neural network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xing, Weiwei; Li, Ying; Zhang, Shunli

2018-01-01

Gait as an important biometric feature can identify a human at a long distance. View change is one of the most challenging factors for gait recognition. To address the cross view issues in gait recognition, we propose a view-invariant gait recognition method by three-dimensional (3-D) convolutional neural network. First, 3-D convolutional neural network (3DCNN) is introduced to learn view-invariant feature, which can capture the spatial information and temporal information simultaneously on normalized silhouette sequences. Second, a network training method based on cross-domain transfer learning is proposed to solve the problem of the limited gait training samples. We choose the C3D as the basic model, which is pretrained on the Sports-1M and then fine-tune C3D model to adapt gait recognition. In the recognition stage, we use the fine-tuned model to extract gait features and use Euclidean distance to measure the similarity of gait sequences. Sufficient experiments are carried out on the CASIA-B dataset and the experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms many other methods.

Fine flow structures in the transition region small-scale loops

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, L.; Peter, H.; He, J.; Wei, Y.

2016-12-01

The observation and model have suggested that the transition region EUV emission from the quiet sun region is contributed by very small scale loops which have not been resolved. Recently, the observation from IRIS has revealed that this kind of small scale loops. Based on the high resolution spectral and imaging observation from IRIS, much more detail work needs to be done to reveal the fine flow features in this kind of loop to help us understand the loop heating. Here, we present a detail statistical study of the spatial and temporal evolution of Si IV line profiles of small scale loops and report the spectral features: there is a transition from blue (red) wing enhancement dominant to red (blue) wing enhancement dominant along the cross-section of the loop, which is independent of time. This feature appears as the loop appear and disappear as the loop un-visible. This is probably the signature of helical flow along the loop. The result suggests that the brightening of this kind of loop is probably due to the current dissipation heating in the twisted magnetic field flux tube.

Multisensor multiresolution data fusion for improvement in classification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rubeena, V.; Tiwari, K. C.

2016-04-01

The rapid advancements in technology have facilitated easy availability of multisensor and multiresolution remote sensing data. Multisensor, multiresolution data contain complementary information and fusion of such data may result in application dependent significant information which may otherwise remain trapped within. The present work aims at improving classification by fusing features of coarse resolution hyperspectral (1 m) LWIR and fine resolution (20 cm) RGB data. The classification map comprises of eight classes. The class names are Road, Trees, Red Roof, Grey Roof, Concrete Roof, Vegetation, bare Soil and Unclassified. The processing methodology for hyperspectral LWIR data comprises of dimensionality reduction, resampling of data by interpolation technique for registering the two images at same spatial resolution, extraction of the spatial features to improve classification accuracy. In the case of fine resolution RGB data, the vegetation index is computed for classifying the vegetation class and the morphological building index is calculated for buildings. In order to extract the textural features, occurrence and co-occurence statistics is considered and the features will be extracted from all the three bands of RGB data. After extracting the features, Support Vector Machine (SVMs) has been used for training and classification. To increase the classification accuracy, post processing steps like removal of any spurious noise such as salt and pepper noise is done which is followed by filtering process by majority voting within the objects for better object classification.

Sapphire Multiple Filament and Large Plate Growth Processes

DTIC Science & Technology

1972-10-01

This is necessary to obtain proper belt tracking. The belts themselves are a silicone / glass fabric manufactured by Dodge Industries, Hoosick Falls...New York. This material is an extremely fine weave fiberglass cloth which is impregnated with silicone rubber. Its properties include high yield...by bonding together (with a silicone adhesive) two 0.010-in. thick strips of Dodge M301 silicone /glass fabric terminating in an angled butt joint to

Advanced Artificial Dielectric Materials for Millimeter Wavelength Applications.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-10-26

extreme, it reaches a finite value, ot’ = - 3/8ir, corresponding to the magnetic behavior of a superconducting sphere [201. E 0.01 10 / - +.c I/LIMIT...dispersion of small magnetic particles, one must proceed carefully in accounting for the various demagnetizing effects, internal and external fields, etc...rum!:er, * ’B0 GOUPSUB OR Artificial Dielectrics, Induced Magnetic Permeability, Properties of’ Heterogeneous Media. Fine Powder Preparation

Fine-structure mapping of the firA gene, a locus involved in the phenotypic expression of rifampin resistance in Escherichia.

PubMed

Lathe, R

1977-09-01

The firA (Ts)200 mutation not only eliminates the resistance to rifampin of certain genetically resistant strains, but, moreover, renders ribonucleic acid synthesis thermolabile. The firA gene has been mapped by P1 tranduction and is located extremely close to the structural gene for deoxyribonucleic acid polymerase III at 4 min on the Escherichia coli linkage map.

Driving bubbles out of glass

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mattox, D. M.

1981-01-01

Surface tension gradient in melt forces gas bubbles to surface, increasing glass strength and transparency. Conventional chemical and buoyant fining are extremely slow in viscous glasses, but tension gradient method moves 250 um bubbles as rapidly as 30 um/s. Heat required for high temperature part of melt is furnished by stationary electrical or natural-gas heater; induction and laser heating are also possible. Method has many applications in industry processes.

Factors affecting development of motor skills in extremely low birth weight children.

PubMed

O'Connor, Anna R; Birch, Eileen E; Spencer, Rand

2009-01-01

The aim of this study is to analyze the impact of ophthalmic and neonatal factors on motor development in extremely low birth weight (ELBW) children. Sixty-four ELBW children at least 3 years of age were recruited. Visual acuity (VA) was assessed using the Teller acuity cards (TACs) and a letter test, if possible. A validated questionnaire assessing 25 fine (part A) and 20 gross motor (part B) skills was administered to the parents. Data were collected on retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) zone, intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH), length of stay in hospital, and number of days on oxygen. Abnormal TAC acuity was associated with significantly lower scores on both parts A and B (part A: 21.5 versus 11.8, p < 0.001; part B: 17.5 versus 13.2, p < 0.001). Linear regression demonstrates a significant direct relationship between letter acuity and score A only (p = 0.03, r(2) = 0.179). Neither length of hospital stay, number of days ventilated, nor a history of IVH were associated with score A or B. However, the presence of ROP zone 1 was associated with a lower score A (p = 0.03). In this ELBW cohort VA and ophthalmic factors were the only factors associated with scores of development, particularly fine motor development.

Landing Site Studies Using High Resolution MGS Crater Counts and Phobos-2 Termoskan Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartmann, Willian K.; Berman, Daniel C.; Betts, Bruce H.

1999-06-01

We have examined a number of potential landing sites to study effects associated with impact crater populations. We used Mars Global Surveyor high resolution MOC images, and emphasized "ground truth" by calibrating with the MOC images of Viking 1 and Pathfinder sites. An interesting result is that most of Mars (all surfaces with model ages older than 100 My) have small crater populations in saturation equilibrium below diameters D approx. = 60 meters (and down to the smallest resolvable, countable sizes, approx. = 15 m). This may have consequences for preservation of surface bedrock exposures accessible to rovers. In the lunar maria, a similar saturation equilibrium is reached for crater diameters below about 300 meters, and this has produced a regolith depth of about 10-20 meters in those areas. Assuming linear scaling, we infer that saturation at D approx. = 60 m would produce gardening and Martian regolith, or fragmental layers, about 2 to 4 meters deep over all but extremely young surfaces (such as the very fresh thin surface flows in southern Elysium Planitia, which have model ages around 10 My or less). This result may explain the global production of ubiquitous dust and fragmental material on Mars. Removal of fines may leave the boulders that have been seen at all three of the first landing sites. Accumulation of the fines elsewhere produces dunes. Due to these effects, it may be difficult to set down rovers in areas where bedrock is well preserved at depths of centimeters, unless we find cliff sides or areas of deflation where wind has exposed clean surfaces (among residual boulders?) We have also surveyed the PHOBOS 2 Termoskan data to look for regions of thermal anomalies that might produce interesting landing sites. For landing site selection, two of the more interesting types of features are thermally distinct ejecta blankets and thermally distinct channels and valleys. Martian "thermal features" such as these that correlate closely with nonaeolian geologic features are extremely rare, presumably due to reworking of the surface as discussed above, and due to aeolian processes. Thermally distinct ejecta blankets are excellent potential future locations for landers, as well as remote sensing, because they represent relatively dust free exposures of material excavated from depth. However, few, if any meet the current constraints on elevation for Mars '01. Thermally distinct channels, which tend to have fretted morphologies, and are higher in inertia than their surroundings, offer a unique history and probable surface presence of material from various stratigraphic layers and, locations, views of the surrounding walls, and possible areas of past standing water, flowing water, or increased amounts of diffusing water. Any presence of water (e.g., diffusing may have enhanced duricrust formation in the channels, thus increasing the thermal inertias (flowing water may alternatively have enhanced rock deposition, which also could explain the inertia enhancements instead of crust formation). Some of the thermally distinct channels do meet the elevation criteria for '01. We are looking particularly at the relatively flat areas at the northern end of Hydraotes Chaos (eastern end of Valles Marineris), near the beginnings of Tiu and Simud Valles, which appear to meet most all of the current '01 landing criteria. For thermally distinct channels, valleys, and ejecta blankets, we have searched and continue to search for MOC images that may help clarify their characteristics and assist with potential landing site characterization.

21st Century Changes in Precipitation Extremes Based on Resolved Atmospheric Patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, X.; Schlosser, C. A.; O'Gorman, P. A.; Monier, E.

2014-12-01

Global warming is expected to alter the frequency and/or magnitude of extreme precipitation events. Such changes could have substantial ecological, economic, and sociological consequences. However, climate models in general do not correctly reproduce the frequency distribution of precipitation, especially at the regional scale. In this study, a validated analogue method is employed to diagnose the potential future shifts in the probability of extreme precipitation over the United States under global warming. The method is based on the use of the resolved large-scale meteorological conditions (i.e. flow features, moisture supply) to detect the occurrence of extreme precipitation. The CMIP5 multi-model projections have been compiled for two radiative forcing scenarios (Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5). We further analyze the accompanying circulation features and their changes that may be responsible for shifts in extreme precipitation in response to changed climate. The application of such analogue method to detect other types of hazard events, i.e. landslides is also explored. The results from this study may guide hazardous weather watches and help society develop adaptive strategies for preventing catastrophic losses.

Reuse of ground waste glass as aggregate for mortars.

PubMed

Corinaldesi, V; Gnappi, G; Moriconi, G; Montenero, A

2005-01-01

This work was aimed at studying the possibility of reusing waste glass from crushed containers and building demolition as aggregate for preparing mortars and concrete. At present, this kind of reuse is still not common due to the risk of alkali-silica reaction between the alkalis of cement and silica of the waste glass. This expansive reaction can cause great problems of cracking and, consequently, it can be extremely deleterious for the durability of mortar and concrete. However, data reported in the literature show that if the waste glass is finely ground, under 75mum, this effect does not occur and mortar durability is guaranteed. Therefore, in this work the possible reactivity of waste glass with the cement paste in mortars was verified, by varying the particle size of the finely ground waste glass. No reaction has been detected with particle size up to 100mum thus indicating the feasibility of the waste glass reuse as fine aggregate in mortars and concrete. In addition, waste glass seems to positively contribute to the mortar micro-structural properties resulting in an evident improvement of its mechanical performance.

Eruption processes and deposit characteristics at the monogenetic Mt. Gambier Volcanic Complex, SE Australia: implications for alternating magmatic and phreatomagmatic activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Otterloo, Jozua; Cas, Raymond A. F.; Sheard, Malcolm J.

2013-08-01

The ˜5 ka Mt. Gambier Volcanic Complex in the Newer Volcanics Province, Australia is an extremely complex monogenetic, volcanic system that preserves at least 14 eruption points aligned along a fissure system. The complex stratigraphy can be subdivided into six main facies that record alternations between magmatic and phreatomagmatic eruption styles in a random manner. The facies are (1) coherent to vesicular fragmental alkali basalt (effusive/Hawaiian spatter and lava flows); (2) massive scoriaceous fine lapilli with coarse ash (Strombolian fallout); (3) bedded scoriaceous fine lapilli tuff (violent Strombolian fallout); (4) thin-medium bedded, undulating very fine lapilli in coarse ash (dry phreatomagmatic surge-modified fallout); (5) palagonite-altered, cross-bedded, medium lapilli to fine ash (wet phreatomagmatic base surges); and (6) massive, palagonite-altered, very poorly sorted tuff breccia and lapilli tuff (phreato-Vulcanian pyroclastic flows). Since most deposits are lithified, to quantify the grain size distributions (GSDs), image analysis was performed. The facies are distinct based on their GSDs and the fine ash to coarse+fine ash ratios. These provide insights into the fragmentation intensities and water-magma interaction efficiencies for each facies. The eruption chronology indicates a random spatial and temporal sequence of occurrence of eruption styles, except for a "magmatic horizon" of effusive activity occurring at both ends of the volcanic complex simultaneously. The eruption foci are located along NW-SE trending lineaments, indicating that the complex was fed by multiple dykes following the subsurface structures related to the Tartwaup Fault System. Possible factors causing vent migration along these dykes and changes in eruption styles include differences in magma ascent rates, viscosity, crystallinity, degassing and magma discharge rate, as well as hydrological parameters.

Fine Mode Aerosol over the United Arab Emirates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ross, K. E.; Piketh, S. J.; Reid, J. S.; Reid, E. A.

2005-12-01

The aerosol loading of the atmosphere over the Arabian Gulf region is extremely diverse and is composed not only of dust, but also of pollution that is derived largely from oil-related activities. Fine mode pollution particles are most efficient at scattering incoming solar radiation and have the potential to act as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), and may therefore have implications for climate change. The smaller aerosols may also pose a health hazard if present in high concentrations. The United Arab Emirates Unified Aerosol Experiment (UAE2) was designed to investigate aerosol and meteorological characteristics over the region using ground-based, aircraft and satellite measurements, and was conducted in August and September 2004. Aerosol chemical composition has been obtained from filters that were collected at the site of the Mobile Atmospheric Aerosol and Radiation Characterization Observatory (MAARCO) on the coast of the UAE between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Filter samples were also collected on an airborne platform in order to assess how aerosol chemical composition varies across the region and throughout the depth of the boundary layer. Results of the analysis of the PM2.5 coastal samples show that ammonium sulphate is the most prevalent constituent of the fine mode aerosol in the region (>50% of the mass), followed by organic matter, alumino-silicates, calcium carbonate and black carbon. Source apportionment indicates that most of the fine aerosol mass is derived from fossil fuel combustion, while mineral dust and local vehicle emissions also contribute to the fine aerosol loading. The organic carbon-to-total carbon ratio of the aerosol is 0.65, which is typical of fossil fuel combustion. The dominance of sulphates means that the fine mode aerosol in the region is probably responsible for a negative radiative forcing, and that the polluting emissions significantly elevate the concentration of CCN.

Painless giant cell thyroiditis diagnosed by fine needle aspiration and associated with intense thyroidal uptake of gallium

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sanders, L.R.; Moreno, A.J.; Pittman, D.L.

1986-05-01

A 52-year-old woman presented with fever, goiter, and no evidence of pain or tenderness in the thyroid. A diagnosis of silent thyroiditis was made after obtaining evidence of biochemical thyrotoxicosis, intense gallium-67 citrate thyroidal localization, and cytologic thyroiditis. Fine needle aspiration biopsy of the thyroid revealed numerous giant cells in all areas of the thyroid, typical of subacute thyroiditis. This is believed to be the first time painless thyroiditis is reported with the classic cytologic feature of painful subacute thyroiditis.

Reducing the spectral index in supernatural inflation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lin, C.-M.; Cheung, Kingman; Division of Quantum Phases and Devices, School of Physics, Konkuk University, Seoul 143-701

2009-04-15

Supernatural inflation is an attractive model based on just a flat direction with soft supersymmetry breaking mass terms in the framework of supersymmetry. The beauty of the model is that it needs no fine-tuning. However, the prediction of the spectral index is n{sub s} > or approx. 1, in contrast to experimental data. In this paper, we discuss supernatural inflation with the spectral index reduced to n{sub s}=0.96 without any fine-tuning, considering the general feature that a flat direction is lifted by a nonrenormalizable term with an A-term.

Parabolic features and the erosion rate on Venus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strom, Robert G.

1993-01-01

The impact cratering record on Venus consists of 919 craters covering 98 percent of the surface. These craters are remarkably well preserved, and most show pristine structures including fresh ejecta blankets. Only 35 craters (3.8 percent) have had their ejecta blankets embayed by lava and most of these occur in the Atla-Beta Regio region; an area thought to be recently active. parabolic features are associated with 66 of the 919 craters. These craters range in size from 6 to 105 km diameter. The parabolic features are thought to be the result of the deposition of fine-grained ejecta by winds in the dense venusian atmosphere. The deposits cover about 9 percent of the surface and none appear to be embayed by younger volcanic materials. However, there appears to be a paucity of these deposits in the Atla-Beta Regio region, and this may be due to the more recent volcanism in this area of Venus. Since parabolic features are probably fine-grain, wind-deposited ejecta, then all impact craters on Venus probably had these deposits at some time in the past. The older deposits have probably been either eroded or buried by eolian processes. Therefore, the present population of these features is probably associated with the most recent impact craters on the planet. Furthermore, the size/frequency distribution of craters with parabolic features is virtually identical to that of the total crater population. This suggests that there has been little loss of small parabolic features compared to large ones, otherwise there should be a significant and systematic paucity of craters with parabolic features with decreasing size compared to the total crater population. Whatever is erasing the parabolic features apparently does so uniformly regardless of the areal extent of the deposit. The lifetime of parabolic features and the eolian erosion rate on Venus can be estimated from the average age of the surface and the present population of parabolic features.

Reducing the fine-tuning of gauge-mediated SUSY breaking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Casas, J. Alberto; Moreno, Jesús M.; Robles, Sandra; Rolbiecki, Krzysztof

2016-08-01

Despite their appealing features, models with gauge-mediated supersymmetry breaking (GMSB) typically present a high degree of fine-tuning, due to the initial absence of the top trilinear scalar couplings, A_t=0. In this paper, we carefully evaluate such a tuning, showing that is worse than per mil in the minimal model. Then, we examine some existing proposals to generate A_t≠ 0 term in this context. We find that, although the stops can be made lighter, usually the tuning does not improve (it may be even worse), with some exceptions, which involve the generation of A_t at one loop or tree level. We examine both possibilities and propose a conceptually simplified version of the latter; which is arguably the optimum GMSB setup (with minimal matter content), concerning the fine-tuning issue. The resulting fine-tuning is better than one per mil, still severe but similar to other minimal supersymmetric standard model constructions. We also explore the so-called "little A_t^2/m^2 problem", i.e. the fact that a large A_t-term is normally accompanied by a similar or larger sfermion mass, which typically implies an increase in the fine-tuning. Finally, we find the version of GMSB for which this ratio is optimized, which, nevertheless, does not minimize the fine-tuning.

IMAGING SPECTROSCOPY FOR DETERMINING RANGELAND STRESSORS TO WESTERN WATERSHEDS

EPA Science Inventory

The Environmental Protection Agency is developing rangeland ecological indicators in twelve western states using advanced remote sensing techniques. Fine spectral resolution (hyperspectral) sensors, or imaging spectrometers, can detect the subtle spectral features that make veget...

IMAGING SPECTROSCOPY FOR DETERMINING RANGELAND STRESSORS TO WESTERN WATERSHEDS

EPA Science Inventory

The Environmental Protection Agency is developing rangeland ecological indicators in eleven western states using advanced remote sensing systems. Fine spectral resolution (hyperspemal) sensors, or imaging spectrometers, can detect the subtle spectral features that makes vegetatio...

Molded transparent photopolymers and phase shift optics for fabricating three dimensional nanostructures

DOE PAGES

Jeon, Seokwoo; Shir, Daniel J.; Nam, Yun Suk; ...

2007-05-08

This paper introduces approaches that combine micro/nanomolding, or nanoimprinting, techniques with proximity optical phase mask lithographic methods to form three dimensional (3D) nanostructures in thick, transparent layers of photopolymers. The results demonstrate three strategies of this type, where molded relief structures in these photopolymers represent (i) fine (<1 μm) features that serve as the phase masks for their own exposure, (ii) coarse features (>1 μm) that are used with phase masks to provide access to large structure dimensions, and (iii) fine structures that are used together phase masks to achieve large, multilevel phase modulations. Several examples are provided, together withmore » optical modeling of the fabrication process and the transmission properties of certain of the fabricated structures. Lastly, these approaches provide capabilities in 3D fabrication that complement those of other techniques, with potential applications in photonics, microfluidics, drug delivery and other areas.« less

Fine-needle aspiration cytology of malignant hemangiopericytoma of the salivary gland: A case report.

PubMed

Shimizu, K; Ogura, S; Kobayashi, T K; Kushima, R; Toyokuni, S; Iwasa, Y; Sakurai, M

1999-12-01

A 79-yr-old woman presented with a 5-yr history of swelling of the left cheek. The fine-needle aspiration (FNA) smear showed a spindle-cell neoplasm with capillaries and benign endothelial cells. The spindle cells possessed pleomorphic, hyperchromatic elongated nuclei and a moderate amount of ill-defined cytoplasm. They also showed papillary arcades surrounded and encased by relatively small ovoid to short spindle cells. Subsequent surgical excision confirmed the presence of malignant hemangiopericytoma (HP). Immunohistochemical studies on the histologic section using vimentin were strongly positive, consistent with HP. To the best of our knowledge, this is the second published report of FNA cellular features of malignant HP of the salivary gland. Besides delineating the FNA cellular features of HP of the salivary gland, the present case illustrates the value of using immunohistochemical approaches. Diagn. Cytopathol. 1999;21:398-401. Copyright 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Incisional endometriosis: diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology.

PubMed

Veda, P; Srinivasaiah, M

2010-07-01

Incisional endometriosis (IE) is a rare entity reported in 0.03-1.08% of women following obstetric or gynecologic surgeries. Most cases reported in literature have appeared after cesarean sections and were often clinically mistaken for hernia, abscess, suture granuloma or lipoma. We hereby report a case of IE following a second trimester hysterotomy, which was diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC). Our patient was 26 years old, presenting with a mass over anterior abdominal wall, associated with incapacitating pain during each menstrual cycle. FNAC showed epithelial cells, stromal cells and hemosiderin laden macrophages. Based on the typical history, clinical and cytological features, the diagnosis of IE was established. Wide surgical excision was done and the resulting rectus sheath defect was repaired. Patient was followed for 6 months during which time she was symptom free. This article also reviews the spectrum of cytological features and the rare possibility of malignant transformation that can occur in IE.

Fine grained recognition of masonry walls for built heritage assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oses, N.; Dornaika, F.; Moujahid, A.

2015-01-01

This paper presents the ground work carried out to achieve automatic fine grained recognition of stone masonry. This is a necessary first step in the development of the analysis tool. The built heritage that will be assessed consists of stone masonry constructions and many of the features analysed can be characterized according to the geometry and arrangement of the stones. Much of the assessment is carried out through visual inspection. Thus, we apply image processing on digital images of the elements under inspection. The main contribution of the paper is the performance evaluation of the automatic categorization of masonry walls from a set of extracted straight line segments. The element chosen to perform this evaluation is the stone arrangement of masonry walls. The validity of the proposed framework is assessed on real images of masonry walls using machine learning paradigms. These include classifiers as well as automatic feature selection.

Comparisons of Remote Sensing Retrievals and in situ Measurements of Aerosol Fine Mode Fraction during ACE-Asia

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gasso, Santiago; O'Neill, Norm

2006-01-01

We present sunphotometer-retrieved and in situ fine mode fractions (FMF) measured onboard the same aircraft during the ACE-Asia experiment. Comparisons indicate that the latter can be used to identify whether the aerosol under observation is dominated by a mixture of modes or a single mode. Differences between retrieved and in situ FMF range from 5-20%. When profiles contained multiple layers of aerosols, the retrieved and measured FMF were segregated by layers. The comparison of layered and total FMF from the same profile indicates that columnar values are intermediate to those derived from layers. As a result, a remotely sensed FMF cannot be used to distinguish whether the aerosol under observation is composed of layers each with distinctive modal features or all layers with the same modal features. Thus, the use of FMF in multiple layer environments does not provide unique information on the aerosol under observation.

LSAH: a fast and efficient local surface feature for point cloud registration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Rongrong; Zhu, Feng; Wu, Qingxiao; Kong, Yanzi

2018-04-01

Point cloud registration is a fundamental task in high level three dimensional applications. Noise, uneven point density and varying point cloud resolutions are the three main challenges for point cloud registration. In this paper, we design a robust and compact local surface descriptor called Local Surface Angles Histogram (LSAH) and propose an effectively coarse to fine algorithm for point cloud registration. The LSAH descriptor is formed by concatenating five normalized sub-histograms into one histogram. The five sub-histograms are created by accumulating a different type of angle from a local surface patch respectively. The experimental results show that our LSAH is more robust to uneven point density and point cloud resolutions than four state-of-the-art local descriptors in terms of feature matching. Moreover, we tested our LSAH based coarse to fine algorithm for point cloud registration. The experimental results demonstrate that our algorithm is robust and efficient as well.

Ribosomes are optimized for autocatalytic production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reuveni, Shlomi; Ehrenberg, Måns; Paulsson, Johan

2017-07-01

Many fine-scale features of ribosomes have been explained in terms of function, revealing a molecular machine that is optimized for error-correction, speed and control. Here we demonstrate mathematically that many less well understood, larger-scale features of ribosomes—such as why a few ribosomal RNA molecules dominate the mass and why the ribosomal protein content is divided into 55-80 small, similarly sized segments—speed up their autocatalytic production.

CD 99 immunocytochemistry in solid pseudopapillary tumor of pancreas: A study on fine-needle aspiration cytology smears.

PubMed

Ghosh, Ranajoy; Mallik, Saumya R; Mathur, Sandeep R; Iyer, Venkateswaran K

2013-07-01

Solid pseudopapillary tumor of pancreas (SPTP) is a rare pancreatic tumor of uncertain histogenesis usually affecting young women. Though these tumors have characteristic cytomorphology, it is sometimes difficult to differentiate them from neuroendocrine tumors of the pancreas. We reviewed cases of SPTP to delineate the diagnostic cytological features and also observed utility of CD 99 (MIC 2) immunostaining to aid in the diagnosis of this tumor. This study was designed to demonstrate the utility of CD 99 immunostaining along with cytological features for making a pre-operative diagnosis and delineating it from the neuroendocrine tumor of pancreas which is a close mimic. Cytomorphological features of 11 cases of solid pseudopapillary neoplasm diagnosed by pre-operative fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) at our institute were reviewed. Immunocytochemistry for CD 99 was also performed on the smears. All the cases had cellular smears with monomorphic cells lying singly, as loosely cohesive clusters as well as forming delicate pseudopapillae. Presence of intra and extra-cellular basement membrane material, background foamy macrophages and nuclear grooves were the other salient features. Immunocytochemistry for CD 99 could be performed on eight cases and demonstrated typical paranuclear dot-like positivity. Pre-operative early diagnosis of SPTP can be made by FNAC which can further be aided by CD 99 immunocytochemistry.

Bilinear Convolutional Neural Networks for Fine-grained Visual Recognition.

PubMed

Lin, Tsung-Yu; RoyChowdhury, Aruni; Maji, Subhransu

2017-07-04

We present a simple and effective architecture for fine-grained recognition called Bilinear Convolutional Neural Networks (B-CNNs). These networks represent an image as a pooled outer product of features derived from two CNNs and capture localized feature interactions in a translationally invariant manner. B-CNNs are related to orderless texture representations built on deep features but can be trained in an end-to-end manner. Our most accurate model obtains 84.1%, 79.4%, 84.5% and 91.3% per-image accuracy on the Caltech-UCSD birds [66], NABirds [63], FGVC aircraft [42], and Stanford cars [33] dataset respectively and runs at 30 frames-per-second on a NVIDIA Titan X GPU. We then present a systematic analysis of these networks and show that (1) the bilinear features are highly redundant and can be reduced by an order of magnitude in size without significant loss in accuracy, (2) are also effective for other image classification tasks such as texture and scene recognition, and (3) can be trained from scratch on the ImageNet dataset offering consistent improvements over the baseline architecture. Finally, we present visualizations of these models on various datasets using top activations of neural units and gradient-based inversion techniques. The source code for the complete system is available at http://vis-www.cs.umass.edu/bcnn.

Four-dimensional approach to simultaneous analysis of urban fine aerosols and three different meteorological parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hejkrlík, Libor; Plachá, Helena

2017-04-01

Number concentrations of fine particles had been measured by SMPS in a diameter range of 10 to 800 nm in 7 channels with time resolution of one hour since June 2012 to December 2015 at a background urban site in Northern Bohemia. At nearly the same place hourly means of three meteorological elements were available (air temperature Th, relative air humidity Hh and global radiation Rh) and as a complementary index of atmospheric pollution the mass concentrations of PM1-BC (black carbon). The whole period of observations covered 1309 days, periodically involving all of the seasons of the year. Th varied between 11,2 ˚ C and 36,1 ˚ C, for Hh it was between 21% and 100% and Rh reached its extremes between 0,2 and 940,5 W/m2 (night hours were excluded). Resulting number of analyzed rows of 11 variables was approximately 14 000. The nearly-continuous combinations of meteorological data were transformed into three-dimensional matrix where Th,Hh and Rh were assigned only few discrete values (48, 13 and 13 respectively). In the cells of the 3D matrix mean concentrations of different modes of fine particles and of PM1-BC were calculated. The results were displayed in the form of XYZ bubble graph, diameters of the spheres being the fourth dimension. The results offer insight into relation between sub-micron particles concentrations and meteorological conditions on parallel time basis. The nucleation mode of nanoparticles (10-30 nm) demonstrate strong proliferation (N˜104/cm3/hour) under extreme both temperature and solar radiation while air moisture remains moderate. The effect is less obvious for Aitken mode (30-70 nm) and fades gradually away for fine particles (100-800 nm, N˜103/cm3/hour). Particles PM1-BC (≤ 1000 nm, Cm ˜1 μg/m3/hour), measured by MAAP, show considerable affinity to low visibility and high humidity but the overall picture persists, what may serve as a proof of equivalence of the measuring procedures.

Extreme supernova models for the super-luminous transient ASASSN-15LH

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chatzopoulos, Emmanouil; Wheeler, John C.; Vinko, J.

The recent discovery of the unprecedentedly super-luminous transient ASASSN-15lh (or SN 2015L) with its UV-bright secondary peak challenges all the power-input models that have been proposed for super-luminous supernovae. Here we examine some of the few viable interpretations of ASASSN-15lh in the context of a stellar explosion, involving combinations of one or more power inputs. We model the light curve of ASASSN-15lh with a hybrid model that includes contributions from magnetar spin-down energy and hydrogen-poor circumstellar interaction. We also investigate models of pure circumstellar interaction with a massive hydrogen-deficient shell and discuss the lack of interaction features in the observedmore » spectra. We find that, as a supernova, ASASSN-15lh can be best modeled by the energetic core-collapse of an ~40 M ⊙ star interacting with a hydrogen-poor shell of ~20 M ⊙. The circumstellar shell and progenitor mass are consistent with a rapidly rotating pulsational pair-instability supernova progenitor as required for strong interaction following the final supernova explosion. Additional energy injection by a magnetar with an initial period of 1–2 ms and magnetic field of 0.1–1 × 10 14 G may supply the excess luminosity required to overcome the deficit in single-component models, but this requires more fine-tuning and extreme parameters for the magnetar, as well as the assumption of efficient conversion of magnetar energy into radiation. As a result, we thus favor a single-input model where the reverse shock formed in a strong SN ejecta–circumstellar matter interaction following a very powerful core-collapse SN explosion can supply the luminosity needed to reproduce the late-time UV-bright plateau.« less

Extreme supernova models for the super-luminous transient ASASSN-15LH

DOE PAGES

Chatzopoulos, Emmanouil; Wheeler, John C.; Vinko, J.; ...

2016-09-07

The recent discovery of the unprecedentedly super-luminous transient ASASSN-15lh (or SN 2015L) with its UV-bright secondary peak challenges all the power-input models that have been proposed for super-luminous supernovae. Here we examine some of the few viable interpretations of ASASSN-15lh in the context of a stellar explosion, involving combinations of one or more power inputs. We model the light curve of ASASSN-15lh with a hybrid model that includes contributions from magnetar spin-down energy and hydrogen-poor circumstellar interaction. We also investigate models of pure circumstellar interaction with a massive hydrogen-deficient shell and discuss the lack of interaction features in the observedmore » spectra. We find that, as a supernova, ASASSN-15lh can be best modeled by the energetic core-collapse of an ~40 M ⊙ star interacting with a hydrogen-poor shell of ~20 M ⊙. The circumstellar shell and progenitor mass are consistent with a rapidly rotating pulsational pair-instability supernova progenitor as required for strong interaction following the final supernova explosion. Additional energy injection by a magnetar with an initial period of 1–2 ms and magnetic field of 0.1–1 × 10 14 G may supply the excess luminosity required to overcome the deficit in single-component models, but this requires more fine-tuning and extreme parameters for the magnetar, as well as the assumption of efficient conversion of magnetar energy into radiation. As a result, we thus favor a single-input model where the reverse shock formed in a strong SN ejecta–circumstellar matter interaction following a very powerful core-collapse SN explosion can supply the luminosity needed to reproduce the late-time UV-bright plateau.« less

Hydraulic and geochemical framework of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory vadose zone

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nimmo, John R.; Rousseau, Joseph P.; Perkins, Kim S.; Stollenwerk, Kenneth G.; Glynn, Pierre D.; Bartholomay, Roy C.; Knobel, LeRoy L.

2004-01-01

Questions of major importance for subsurface contaminant transport at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) include (i) travel times to the aquifer, both average or typical values and the range of values to be expected, and (ii) modes of contaminant transport, especially sorption processes. The hydraulic and geochemical framework within which these questions are addressed is dominated by extreme heterogeneity in a vadose zone and aquifer consisting of interbedded basalts and sediments. Hydraulically, major issues include diverse possible types of flow pathways, extreme anisotropy, preferential flow, combined vertical and horizontal flow, and temporary saturation or perching. Geochemically, major issues include contaminant mobility as influenced by redox conditions, the concentration of organic and inorganic complexing solutes and other local variables, the interaction with infiltrating waters and with the contaminant source environment, and the aqueous speciation of contaminants such as actinides. Another major issue is the possibility of colloid transport, which inverts some of the traditional concepts of mobility, as sorbed contaminants on mobile colloids may be transported with ease compared with contaminants that are not sorbed. With respect to the goal of minimizing aquifer concentrations of contaminants, some characteristics of the vadose zone are essentially completely favorable. Examples include the great thickness (200 m) of the vadose zone, and the presence of substantial quantities of fine sediments that can retard contaminant transport both hydraulically and chemically. Most characteristics, however, have both favorable and unfavorable aspects. For example, preferential flow, as promoted by several notable features of the vadose zone at the INEEL, can provide fast, minimally sorbing pathways for contaminants to reach the aquifer easily, but it also leads to a wide dispersal of contaminants in a large volume of subsurface material, thus increasing the opportunity for dilution and sorption.

Seismic wave velocity of hydrate-bearing fine-grained sediments sampled from the Ulleung basin in East Sea, Korea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, H.; Kwon, T.; Cho, G.

2012-12-01

Synthesizing gas hydrate in a fine-grained natural seabed sediment sample, mainly composed of silty-to-clayey soils, has been hardly attempted due to the low permeability. It has been known that hydrate loci in pore spaces and heterogeneity of hydrate growth in core-scale play a critical role in determining physical properties of hydrate-bearing sediments. In the presented study, we attempted to identify the effect of hydrate growth morphology on seismic velocities in natural fine-grained sediments sampled from the Ulleung Basin in East Sea. We synthesized CO2 hydrate in clayey silt sediments in an instrumented oedometric cell and measured seismic velocities during hydrate formation and loading processes. Herein, we present the experiment results on P-wave and S-wave velocities of gas hydrate-bearing fine-grained sediments. It is found that the geophysical properties of gas hydrate-bearing sediments are governed by hydrate saturation and effective stress as well as morphological feature of hydrate formation in sediments.

First physical volcanological description of a Miocene, silicic, phreatomagmatic fall complex in the Carpatho-Pannonian Region (CPR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biró, Tamás; Hencz, Mátyás; Karátson, Dávid; Márton, Emő; Bradák-Hayashi, Balázs; Szalai, Zoltán

2017-04-01

The study reports the basic physical volcanological and stratigraphical features of a hitherto unrecognized silicic phreatomagmatic fall succession from the Bükk Foreland Volcanic Area (Hungary), known as part of the extensive Miocene ignimbrite volcanism of the northern CPR. The complex have been identified at two sites, in the vicinity of Bogács and Tibolddaróc villages. Tens of mm to several dm thick layers make up the 20 m thick entire succession. The complex could be subdivided into three eruption cycles by two, intercalated well-developed paleosoil horizons, which indicate longer repose periods. The eruption cycles consist of several individual eruptive events. The volcano-sedimentological field approach was completed by granulometrical and low field anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) studies. Combined dry sieving and laser diffraction particle size analysis were performed to get information on median grain size (MdΦ) and sorting (σΦ) of friable layers. AMS was used to infer the emplacement processes. Based on the following features the succession is proposed to record a large-scale, silicic, phreatomagmatic fall activity: i) Presence of very fine ash and abundant ash aggregates, ii) General poor sorting, and often bimodal grain-size distributions; ii) Extremely weak magnetic fabric compared to dilute, thin pyroclastic density current deposits. On the basis of comparison of the recorded grain size characteristics with data from other silicic phretomagmatic fall deposits worldwide, several units in the succession can be considered as phreatoplinian fall deposit (sensu lato), described for the first time in the CPR.

Deep Learning Methods for Underwater Target Feature Extraction and Recognition

PubMed Central

Peng, Yuan; Qiu, Mengran; Shi, Jianfei; Liu, Liangliang

2018-01-01

The classification and recognition technology of underwater acoustic signal were always an important research content in the field of underwater acoustic signal processing. Currently, wavelet transform, Hilbert-Huang transform, and Mel frequency cepstral coefficients are used as a method of underwater acoustic signal feature extraction. In this paper, a method for feature extraction and identification of underwater noise data based on CNN and ELM is proposed. An automatic feature extraction method of underwater acoustic signals is proposed using depth convolution network. An underwater target recognition classifier is based on extreme learning machine. Although convolution neural networks can execute both feature extraction and classification, their function mainly relies on a full connection layer, which is trained by gradient descent-based; the generalization ability is limited and suboptimal, so an extreme learning machine (ELM) was used in classification stage. Firstly, CNN learns deep and robust features, followed by the removing of the fully connected layers. Then ELM fed with the CNN features is used as the classifier to conduct an excellent classification. Experiments on the actual data set of civil ships obtained 93.04% recognition rate; compared to the traditional Mel frequency cepstral coefficients and Hilbert-Huang feature, recognition rate greatly improved. PMID:29780407

Semi-supervised tracking of extreme weather events in global spatio-temporal climate datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, S. K.; Prabhat, M.; Williams, D. N.

2017-12-01

Deep neural networks have been successfully applied to solve problem to detect extreme weather events in large scale climate datasets and attend superior performance that overshadows all previous hand-crafted methods. Recent work has shown that multichannel spatiotemporal encoder-decoder CNN architecture is able to localize events in semi-supervised bounding box. Motivated by this work, we propose new learning metric based on Variational Auto-Encoders (VAE) and Long-Short-Term-Memory (LSTM) to track extreme weather events in spatio-temporal dataset. We consider spatio-temporal object tracking problems as learning probabilistic distribution of continuous latent features of auto-encoder using stochastic variational inference. For this, we assume that our datasets are i.i.d and latent features is able to be modeled by Gaussian distribution. In proposed metric, we first train VAE to generate approximate posterior given multichannel climate input with an extreme climate event at fixed time. Then, we predict bounding box, location and class of extreme climate events using convolutional layers given input concatenating three features including embedding, sampled mean and standard deviation. Lastly, we train LSTM with concatenated input to learn timely information of dataset by recurrently feeding output back to next time-step's input of VAE. Our contribution is two-fold. First, we show the first semi-supervised end-to-end architecture based on VAE to track extreme weather events which can apply to massive scaled unlabeled climate datasets. Second, the information of timely movement of events is considered for bounding box prediction using LSTM which can improve accuracy of localization. To our knowledge, this technique has not been explored neither in climate community or in Machine Learning community.

Application of data on climate extremes for the southwestern United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Redmond, K. T.; Fleishman, E.; Cayan, D. R.; Daudert, B.; Gershunov, A.

2015-12-01

We are improving the scientific capacity to evaluate responses of natural resources to climate extremes. We also are enhancing a platform for derivation of and access to customized climate information for the full extent or any subset of the southwestern United States. Extreme climate can have substantial effects on species, ecological and evolutionary processes, and the health of visitors to public lands. We are working with federal and state managers and with researchers who collaborate with decision-makers to use data on climate extremes to inform resource management. Current applications include sudden oak death, estuarine management, and fine-resolution manipulation of montane vegetation. To facilitate practical use of data on climate extremes, we are screening global climate models on the basis of their realism in representing natural regional patterns and extremes of temperature and precipitation, including those driven by El Niño and La Niña. We are assessing how well each model represents different climate elements. We also are delivering point and gridded observations and downscaled model projections, all at daily and 6 km resolution, on past and future climate extremes. Additionally, we are using the downscaled outputs to drive a hydrologic model and derive multiple probabilistic measures of water availability, flood, and drought. Moreover, we are extending the capacity of the Southwest Climate and Environmental Information Collaborative (SCENIC; wrcc.dri.edu/csc/scenic), a product developed by the Western Regional Climate Center, to provide access to diverse observed and simulated data on regional weather and climate, particularly on extremes.

The [CII]/[NII] far-infrared line ratio at z>5: extreme conditions for “normal” galaxies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pavesi, Riccardo; Riechers, Dominik; Capak, Peter L.; Carilli, Chris Luke; Sharon, Chelsea E.; Stacey, Gordon J.; Karim, Alexander; Scoville, Nicholas; Smolcic, Vernesa

2017-01-01

Thanks to the Atacama Large (sub-)Millimeter Array (ALMA), observations of atomic far-infrared fine structure lines are a very productive way of measuring physical properties of the interstellar medium (ISM) in galaxies at high redshift, because they provide an unobscured view into the physical conditions of star formation. While the bright [CII] line has become a routine probe of the dynamical properties of the gas, its intensity needs to be compared to other lines in order to establish the physical origin of the emission. [NII] selectively traces the emission coming from the ionized fraction of the [CII]-emitting gas, offering insight into the phase structure of the ISM. Here we present ALMA measurements of [NII] 205 μm fine structure line emission from a representative sample of galaxies at z=5-6 spanning two orders of magnitude in star formation rate (SFR). Our results show at least two different regimes of ionized gas properties for galaxies in the first billion years of cosmic time, separated by their L[CII]/L[NII] ratio. First, we find extremely low [NII] emission compared to [CII] from a “typical” Lyman Break Galaxy (LBG-1), likely due to low dust content and reminiscent of local dwarfs. Second, the dusty Lyman Break Galaxy HZ10 and the extreme starburst AzTEC-3 show ionized gas fractions typical of local star-forming galaxies and show hints of spatial variations in their [CII]/[NII] line ratio. These observations of far-infrared lines in “normal” galaxies at z>5 yield some of the first constraints on ISM models for young galaxies in the first billion years of cosmic time and shed light on the observed evolution of the dust and gas properties.

Fine-structure mapping of the firA gene, a locus involved in the phenotypic expression of rifampin resistance in Escherichia.

PubMed Central

Lathe, R

1977-01-01

The firA (Ts)200 mutation not only eliminates the resistance to rifampin of certain genetically resistant strains, but, moreover, renders ribonucleic acid synthesis thermolabile. The firA gene has been mapped by P1 tranduction and is located extremely close to the structural gene for deoxyribonucleic acid polymerase III at 4 min on the Escherichia coli linkage map. PMID:330494

Efficacy of Teaching Clinical Clerks and Residents How to Fill Out the Form 1 of the Mental Health Act Using an e-Learning Module

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garside, Sarah; Levinson, Anthony; Kuziora, Sophie; Bay, Michael; Norman, Geoffrey

2009-01-01

Background: Every physician in Ontario needs to know how to fill out a Form 1 in order to legally hold a person against their will for a psychiatric assessment. These forms are frequently inaccurately filled out, which could constitute wrongful confinement and, in extreme circumstances, could lead to fines as large as $25,000. Training people to…

Investigation of Microtubular Ceramic Structures

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-02-01

25 Experiments 05x - Excel ŗ-5 CAL" (Powder D). 25 Experiments 06x - Excel ŗ-5 CAL" (Powder D). 26 Experiments 07x - Stabilized Zirconia ( Powder E...an extremely fine particle size (- 0. 4 jim) for satisfactory sintering. With zirconia powder of this particle size, spherical aggregates formed...firm" packing pressure, sustained large additions (15 to--9 gm/cycle) occurred. Experiments 07x - Stabilized Zirconia ( Powder E) The 07x experiments

Climate, soil and plant functional types as drivers of global fine-root trait variation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Freschet, Grégoire T.; Valverde-Barrantes, Oscar J.; Tucker, Caroline M.

Ecosystem functioning relies heavily on below-ground processes, which are largely regulated by plant fine-roots and their functional traits. However, our knowledge of fine-root trait distribution relies to date on local- and regional-scale studies with limited numbers of species, growth forms and environmental variation. We compiled a world-wide fine-root trait dataset, featuring 1115 species from contrasting climatic areas, phylogeny and growth forms to test a series of hypotheses pertaining to the influence of plant functional types, soil and climate variables, and the degree of manipulation of plant growing conditions on species fine-root trait variation. Most particularly, we tested the competing hypothesesmore » that fine-root traits typical of faster return on investment would be most strongly associated with conditions of limiting versus favourable soil resource availability. We accounted for both data source and species phylogenetic relatedness. We demonstrate that: (i) Climate conditions promoting soil fertility relate negatively to fine-root traits favouring fast soil resource acquisition, with a particularly strong positive effect of temperature on fine-root diameter and negative effect on specific root length (SRL), and a negative effect of rainfall on root nitrogen concentration; (ii) Soil bulk density strongly influences species fine-root morphology, by favouring thicker, denser fine-roots; (iii) Fine-roots from herbaceous species are on average finer and have higher SRL than those of woody species, and N 2-fixing capacity positively relates to root nitrogen; and (iv) Plants growing in pots have higher SRL than those grown in the field. Synthesis. This study reveals both the large variation in fine-root traits encountered globally and the relevance of several key plant functional types and soil and climate variables for explaining a substantial part of this variation. Climate, particularly temperature, and plant functional types were the two strongest predictors of fine-root trait variation. High trait variation occurred at local scales, suggesting that wide-ranging below-ground resource economics strategies are viable within most climatic areas and soil conditions.« less

Climate, soil and plant functional types as drivers of global fine-root trait variation

DOE PAGES

Freschet, Grégoire T.; Valverde-Barrantes, Oscar J.; Tucker, Caroline M.; ...

2017-03-08

Ecosystem functioning relies heavily on below-ground processes, which are largely regulated by plant fine-roots and their functional traits. However, our knowledge of fine-root trait distribution relies to date on local- and regional-scale studies with limited numbers of species, growth forms and environmental variation. We compiled a world-wide fine-root trait dataset, featuring 1115 species from contrasting climatic areas, phylogeny and growth forms to test a series of hypotheses pertaining to the influence of plant functional types, soil and climate variables, and the degree of manipulation of plant growing conditions on species fine-root trait variation. Most particularly, we tested the competing hypothesesmore » that fine-root traits typical of faster return on investment would be most strongly associated with conditions of limiting versus favourable soil resource availability. We accounted for both data source and species phylogenetic relatedness. We demonstrate that: (i) Climate conditions promoting soil fertility relate negatively to fine-root traits favouring fast soil resource acquisition, with a particularly strong positive effect of temperature on fine-root diameter and negative effect on specific root length (SRL), and a negative effect of rainfall on root nitrogen concentration; (ii) Soil bulk density strongly influences species fine-root morphology, by favouring thicker, denser fine-roots; (iii) Fine-roots from herbaceous species are on average finer and have higher SRL than those of woody species, and N 2-fixing capacity positively relates to root nitrogen; and (iv) Plants growing in pots have higher SRL than those grown in the field. Synthesis. This study reveals both the large variation in fine-root traits encountered globally and the relevance of several key plant functional types and soil and climate variables for explaining a substantial part of this variation. Climate, particularly temperature, and plant functional types were the two strongest predictors of fine-root trait variation. High trait variation occurred at local scales, suggesting that wide-ranging below-ground resource economics strategies are viable within most climatic areas and soil conditions.« less

Dinocyst taphonomy, impact craters, cyst ghosts, and the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Edwards, Lucy E.

2012-01-01

Dinocysts recovered from sediments related to the Chesapeake Bay impact structure in Virginia and the earliest Eocene suboxic environment in Maryland show strange and intriguing details of preservation. Features such as curled processes, opaque debris, breakage, microborings and cyst ghosts, among others, invite speculation about catastrophic depositional processes, rapid burial and biological and chemical decay. Selected specimens from seven cores taken in the coastal plain of Virginia and Maryland show abnormal preservation features in various combinations that merit illustration, description, discussion and further study. Although the depositional environments described are extreme, many of the features discussed are known from, or could be found in, other environments. These environments will show both similarities to and differences from the extreme environments here.

3D WHOLE-PROMINENCE FINE STRUCTURE MODELING. II. PROMINENCE EVOLUTION

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gunár, Stanislav; Mackay, Duncan H.

2015-10-20

We use the new three-dimensional (3D) whole-prominence fine structure model to study the evolution of prominences and their fine structures in response to changes in the underlying photospheric magnetic flux distribution. The applied model combines a detailed 3D prominence magnetic field configuration with a realistic description of the prominence plasma distributed along multiple fine structures. In addition, we utilize an approximate Hα visualization technique to study the evolution of the visible cool prominence plasma both in emission (prominence) and absorption (filament). We show that the initial magnetic field configuration of the modeled prominence is significantly disturbed by the changing positionmore » of a single polarity of a magnetic bipole as the bipole is advected toward the main body of the filament. This leads to the creation of a barb, which becomes the dominant feature visible in the synthetic Hα images of both the prominence and filament views. The evolution of the bipole also creates conditions that lead to the disappearance and reappearance of large portions of the main body. We also show that an arch-like region containing a dark void (a bubble) can be naturally produced in the synthetic prominence Hα images. While not visible in terms of the magnetic field lines, it is due to a lack of Hα emission from low-pressure, low-density plasma located in shallow magnetic dips lying along the lines of sight intersecting the dark void. In addition, a quasi-vertical small-scale feature consisting of short and deep dips, piled one above the other, is produced.« less

Distinctive features of high-ash bituminuos coals combution with low milling fineness in furnace chambers with bottom blowing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zroychikov, N. A.; Kaverin, A. A.; Biryukov, Ya A.

2017-11-01

Nowadays the problem of improvement of pulverized coal combustion schemes is an actual one for national power engineering, especially for combustion of coals with low milling fineness with significant portion of moisture or mineral impurities. In this case a big portion of inert material in the fuel may cause impairment of its ignition and combustion. In addition there are a lot of boiler installations on which nitrogen oxides emission exceeds standard values significantly. Decreasing of milling fineness is not without interest as a way of lowering an electric energy consumption for pulverization, which can reach 30% of power plant’s auxiliary consumption of electricity. Development of a combustion scheme meeting the requirements both for effective coal burning and environmental measures (related to NOx emission) is a complex task and demands compromising between these two factors, because implementation of NOx control by combustion very often leads to rising of carbon-in-ash loss. However widespread occurrence of such modern research technique as computer modeling allows to conduct big amount of variants calculations of combustion schemes with low cost and find an optimum. This paper presents results of numerical research of combined schemes of coal combustion with high portion of inert material based on straight-flow burners and nozzles. Several distinctive features of furnace aerodynamics, heat transfer and combustion has been found. The combined scheme of high-ash bituminouos coals combustion with low milling fineness, which allows effective combustion of pointed type of fuels with nitrogen oxides emission reduction has been proposed.

Characterising and classifying agricultural drainage channels for sediment and phosphorus management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shore, Mairead; Jordan, Phil; Mellander, Per-Erik; Quinn, Mary Kelly; Daly, Karen; Sims, James Tom; Melland, Alice

2016-04-01

In agricultural landscapes, surface ditches and streams can significantly influence the attenuation and transfer of sediment and phosphorus (P) from upstream sources to receiving water-bodies. The sediment attenuation and/or transfer capacity of these features depends on channel physical characteristics. This is similar for P, in addition to the sediment physico-chemical characteristics. Therefore, a greater understanding of (i) channel physical characteristics and (ii) the associated sediment physico-chemical characteristics could be used to develop channel-specific management strategies for the reduction of downstream sediment and P transfers. Using a detailed field survey of surface channel networks in a well-drained arable and a poorly-drained grassland catchment (both c.10km2), this study (i) characterised all ditches and streams in both catchments, (ii) investigated the physico-chemical characteristics of sediments in a subset of ditches, (iii) classified all channels into four classes of fine sediment retention and/or transfer likelihood based on a comparison of physical characteristics (slope and drainage area) with observations of fine sediment accumulation and (iv) considered P management strategies that are suited to each class. Mehlich3-Al/P and Mehlich3-Ca/P contents of ditch sediments in the well (non-calcareous) and poorly (calcareous) drained catchments, respectively, indicated potential for soluble P retention (above thresholds of 11.7 and 74, respectively). In general, ditches with low slopes had the greatest potential to retain fine sediment and associated particulate P. As sediments in these catchments are likely to primarily adsorb, rather than release soluble P, these flat ditches are also likely to reduce soluble P loading downstream. Ditches with moderate-high slopes had the greatest potential to mobilise fine sediment and associated P during event flows. Ditch dimensions were not closely related to their indicative flow volumes and were over-engineered, which likely reduces downstream P transfer. Streams had the greatest potential to convey fine sediment and associated P during event flows. Optimising these linear features for eutrophication management in headwaters, periodic removal of fine sediment and maintenance of channel vegetation in net attenuating and transferring channels, respectively, would help to minimise sediment and P transfers from these catchments.

Axions, inflation and the anthropic principle

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mack, Katherine J., E-mail: mack@ast.cam.ac.uk

2011-07-01

The QCD axion is the leading solution to the strong-CP problem, a dark matter candidate, and a possible result of string theory compactifications. However, for axions produced before inflation, symmetry-breaking scales of f{sub a}∼>10{sup 12} GeV (which are favored in string-theoretic axion models) are ruled out by cosmological constraints unless both the axion misalignment angle θ{sub 0} and the inflationary Hubble scale H{sub I} are extremely fine-tuned. We show that attempting to accommodate a high-f{sub a} axion in inflationary cosmology leads to a fine-tuning problem that is worse than the strong-CP problem the axion was originally invented to solve. Wemore » also show that this problem remains unresolved by anthropic selection arguments commonly applied to the high-f{sub a} axion scenario.« less

Extremely high-definition full-parallax computer-generated hologram created by the polygon-based method.

PubMed

Matsushima, Kyoji; Nakahara, Sumio

2009-12-01

A large-scale full-parallax computer-generated hologram (CGH) with four billion (2(16) x 2(16)) pixels is created to reconstruct a fine true 3D image of a scene, with occlusions. The polygon-based method numerically generates the object field of a surface object, whose shape is provided by a set of vertex data of polygonal facets, while the silhouette method makes it possible to reconstruct the occluded scene. A novel technique using the segmented frame buffer is presented for handling and propagating large wave fields even in the case where the whole wave field cannot be stored in memory. We demonstrate that the full-parallax CGH, calculated by the proposed method and fabricated by a laser lithography system, reconstructs a fine 3D image accompanied by a strong sensation of depth.

Marine Extremophiles: A Source of Hydrolases for Biotechnological Applications

PubMed Central

Dalmaso, Gabriel Zamith Leal; Ferreira, Davis; Vermelho, Alane Beatriz

2015-01-01

The marine environment covers almost three quarters of the planet and is where evolution took its first steps. Extremophile microorganisms are found in several extreme marine environments, such as hydrothermal vents, hot springs, salty lakes and deep-sea floors. The ability of these microorganisms to support extremes of temperature, salinity and pressure demonstrates their great potential for biotechnological processes. Hydrolases including amylases, cellulases, peptidases and lipases from hyperthermophiles, psychrophiles, halophiles and piezophiles have been investigated for these reasons. Extremozymes are adapted to work in harsh physical-chemical conditions and their use in various industrial applications such as the biofuel, pharmaceutical, fine chemicals and food industries has increased. The understanding of the specific factors that confer the ability to withstand extreme habitats on such enzymes has become a priority for their biotechnological use. The most studied marine extremophiles are prokaryotes and in this review, we present the most studied archaea and bacteria extremophiles and their hydrolases, and discuss their use for industrial applications. PMID:25854643

Extreme Ultraviolet Emission Spectrum of CO_2 Induced by Electron Impact at 200 eV

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kanik, I.; Ajello, J. M.; James, G. K.

1993-01-01

We present the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission spectrum of CO_2 induced by electronimpact at 200 eV. There are 36 spectral features which are identified with a resolution of 0.5 nmover the wavelength range of 40 to 125 nm. Absolute emission cross sections were obtained for eachof these features. The EUV emission spectrum induced by electron impact consist of atomicmultiplets of CI,II and OI,II,III as well as CO and CO^+ molecular band systems produced bydissociative excitation. The CI (119.4 nm) multiplet is the strongest feature of CI with a peak crosssection of 3.61 x 10^(-19) cm^2 at 200 eV. The strongest feature of OI in the EUV spectrum is theOI (99.0 nm) multiplet with a peak cross section of 3.59 x 10^(-19) cm^2 at 200 eV.

Automated discrimination of dementia spectrum disorders using extreme learning machine and structural T1 MRI features.

PubMed

Jongin Kim; Boreom Lee

2017-07-01

The classification of neuroimaging data for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is one of the main research goals of the neuroscience and clinical fields. In this study, we performed extreme learning machine (ELM) classifier to discriminate the AD, mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from normal control (NC). We compared the performance of ELM with that of a linear kernel support vector machine (SVM) for 718 structural MRI images from Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database. The data consisted of normal control, MCI converter (MCI-C), MCI non-converter (MCI-NC), and AD. We employed SVM-based recursive feature elimination (RFE-SVM) algorithm to find the optimal subset of features. In this study, we found that the RFE-SVM feature selection approach in combination with ELM shows the superior classification accuracy to that of linear kernel SVM for structural T1 MRI data.

Ultrastructure of canine vasoformative tumors.

PubMed

Madewell, B R; Griffey, S M; Munn, R J

1992-01-01

The transmission electron microscope was used to examine 20 spontaneous canine hemangiosarcomas or hemangiopericytomas in order to define their fine ultrastructural features, and to compare those features with descriptions of human counterpart neoplasms. From specimen to specimen the neoplasms examined showed considerable structural heterogeneity but, in composite, appeared similar to the prototype human tumors. These data suggest that the canine hemangiosarcoma and hemangiopericytoma might serve as comparative models for studies of the morphogenesis of vasoformative neoplasms.

The Operator Shell: A means of privilege distribution under Unix

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Neuman, M.; Christoph, G.

1994-03-01

The Operator Shell (Osh) is a setuid root, security enhanced, restricted shell for providing fine-grain distribution of system privileges for a wide range of usages and requirements. Osh offers a marked improvement over other Unix privilege distribution systems in its ability to specify access to both commands and files, auditing features, and familiar interface. This paper describes the design, features, security considerations, internals, and applications of the Operator Shell.

Research on improving image recognition robustness by combining multiple features with associative memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Dongwei; Wang, Zhe

2018-05-01

Convolutional neural networks (CNN) achieve great success in computer vision, it can learn hierarchical representation from raw pixels and has outstanding performance in various image recognition tasks [1]. However, CNN is easy to be fraudulent in terms of it is possible to produce images totally unrecognizable to human eyes that CNNs believe with near certainty are familiar objects. [2]. In this paper, an associative memory model based on multiple features is proposed. Within this model, feature extraction and classification are carried out by CNN, T-SNE and exponential bidirectional associative memory neural network (EBAM). The geometric features extracted from CNN and the digital features extracted from T-SNE are associated by EBAM. Thus we ensure the recognition of robustness by a comprehensive assessment of the two features. In our model, we can get only 8% error rate with fraudulent data. In systems that require a high safety factor or some key areas, strong robustness is extremely important, if we can ensure the image recognition robustness, network security will be greatly improved and the social production efficiency will be extremely enhanced.

Image segmentation by hierarchial agglomeration of polygons using ecological statistics

DOEpatents

Prasad, Lakshman; Swaminarayan, Sriram

2013-04-23

A method for rapid hierarchical image segmentation based on perceptually driven contour completion and scene statistics is disclosed. The method begins with an initial fine-scale segmentation of an image, such as obtained by perceptual completion of partial contours into polygonal regions using region-contour correspondences established by Delaunay triangulation of edge pixels as implemented in VISTA. The resulting polygons are analyzed with respect to their size and color/intensity distributions and the structural properties of their boundaries. Statistical estimates of granularity of size, similarity of color, texture, and saliency of intervening boundaries are computed and formulated into logical (Boolean) predicates. The combined satisfiability of these Boolean predicates by a pair of adjacent polygons at a given segmentation level qualifies them for merging into a larger polygon representing a coarser, larger-scale feature of the pixel image and collectively obtains the next level of polygonal segments in a hierarchy of fine-to-coarse segmentations. The iterative application of this process precipitates textured regions as polygons with highly convolved boundaries and helps distinguish them from objects which typically have more regular boundaries. The method yields a multiscale decomposition of an image into constituent features that enjoy a hierarchical relationship with features at finer and coarser scales. This provides a traversable graph structure from which feature content and context in terms of other features can be derived, aiding in automated image understanding tasks. The method disclosed is highly efficient and can be used to decompose and analyze large images.

An Efficient Multiscale Finite-Element Method for Frequency-Domain Seismic Wave Propagation

DOE PAGES

Gao, Kai; Fu, Shubin; Chung, Eric T.

2018-02-13

The frequency-domain seismic-wave equation, that is, the Helmholtz equation, has many important applications in seismological studies, yet is very challenging to solve, particularly for large geological models. Iterative solvers, domain decomposition, or parallel strategies can partially alleviate the computational burden, but these approaches may still encounter nontrivial difficulties in complex geological models where a sufficiently fine mesh is required to represent the fine-scale heterogeneities. We develop a novel numerical method to solve the frequency-domain acoustic wave equation on the basis of the multiscale finite-element theory. We discretize a heterogeneous model with a coarse mesh and employ carefully constructed high-order multiscalemore » basis functions to form the basis space for the coarse mesh. Solved from medium- and frequency-dependent local problems, these multiscale basis functions can effectively capture themedium’s fine-scale heterogeneity and the source’s frequency information, leading to a discrete system matrix with a much smaller dimension compared with those from conventional methods.We then obtain an accurate solution to the acoustic Helmholtz equation by solving only a small linear system instead of a large linear system constructed on the fine mesh in conventional methods.We verify our new method using several models of complicated heterogeneities, and the results show that our new multiscale method can solve the Helmholtz equation in complex models with high accuracy and extremely low computational costs.« less

An Efficient Multiscale Finite-Element Method for Frequency-Domain Seismic Wave Propagation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gao, Kai; Fu, Shubin; Chung, Eric T.

The frequency-domain seismic-wave equation, that is, the Helmholtz equation, has many important applications in seismological studies, yet is very challenging to solve, particularly for large geological models. Iterative solvers, domain decomposition, or parallel strategies can partially alleviate the computational burden, but these approaches may still encounter nontrivial difficulties in complex geological models where a sufficiently fine mesh is required to represent the fine-scale heterogeneities. We develop a novel numerical method to solve the frequency-domain acoustic wave equation on the basis of the multiscale finite-element theory. We discretize a heterogeneous model with a coarse mesh and employ carefully constructed high-order multiscalemore » basis functions to form the basis space for the coarse mesh. Solved from medium- and frequency-dependent local problems, these multiscale basis functions can effectively capture themedium’s fine-scale heterogeneity and the source’s frequency information, leading to a discrete system matrix with a much smaller dimension compared with those from conventional methods.We then obtain an accurate solution to the acoustic Helmholtz equation by solving only a small linear system instead of a large linear system constructed on the fine mesh in conventional methods.We verify our new method using several models of complicated heterogeneities, and the results show that our new multiscale method can solve the Helmholtz equation in complex models with high accuracy and extremely low computational costs.« less

Japanese Robotic SFA during Expedition 22

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-03-11

ISS022-E-090362 (11 March 2010) --- The Japanese Robotic Manipulator System / Small Fine Arm (RMS/SFA), is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 22 crew member on the International Space Station. The SFA is also known as ?Ko-bot?.

Quantification of human upper extremity nerves and fascicular anatomy.

PubMed

Brill, Natalie A; Tyler, Dustin J

2017-09-01

In this study we provide detailed quantification of upper extremity nerve and fascicular anatomy. The purpose is to provide values and trends in neural features useful for clinical applications and neural interface device design. Nerve cross-sections were taken from 4 ulnar, 4 median, and 3 radial nerves from 5 arms of 3 human cadavers. Quantified nerve features included cross-sectional area, minor diameter, and major diameter. Fascicular features analyzed included count, perimeter, area, and position. Mean fascicular diameters were 0.57 ± 0.39, 0.6 ± 0.3, 0.5 ± 0.26 mm in the upper arm and 0.38 ± 0.18, 0.47 ± 0.18, 0.4 ± 0.27 mm in the forearm of ulnar, median, and radial nerves, respectively. Mean fascicular diameters were inversely proportional to fascicle count. Detailed quantitative anatomy of upper extremity nerves is a resource for design of neural electrodes, guidance in extraneural procedures, and improved neurosurgical planning. Muscle Nerve 56: 463-471, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A Heart in Ascraeus Mons

NASA Image and Video Library

2014-04-09

This feature from NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter looks like a heart. It is located south of Ascraeus Mons, which is a large volcano within the Tharsis volcanic plateau, making it extremely likely that this feature was formed by a volcanic process.

The balance and harmony of control power for a combat aircraft in tactical maneuvering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bocvarov, Spiro; Cliff, Eugene M.; Lutze, Frederick H.

1992-01-01

An analysis is presented for a family of regular extremal attitude-maneuvers for the High Angle-of-Attack Research Vehicle that has thrust-vectoring capability. Different levels of dynamic coupling are identified in the combat aircraft attitude model, and the characteristic extremal-family motion is explained. It is shown why the extremal-family trajectories develop small sideslip-angles, a highly desirable feature from a practical viewpoint.

High speed micromachining with high power UV laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patel, Rajesh S.; Bovatsek, James M.

2013-03-01

Increasing demand for creating fine features with high accuracy in manufacturing of electronic mobile devices has fueled growth for lasers in manufacturing. High power, high repetition rate ultraviolet (UV) lasers provide an opportunity to implement a cost effective high quality, high throughput micromachining process in a 24/7 manufacturing environment. The energy available per pulse and the pulse repetition frequency (PRF) of diode pumped solid state (DPSS) nanosecond UV lasers have increased steadily over the years. Efficient use of the available energy from a laser is important to generate accurate fine features at a high speed with high quality. To achieve maximum material removal and minimal thermal damage for any laser micromachining application, use of the optimal process parameters including energy density or fluence (J/cm2), pulse width, and repetition rate is important. In this study we present a new high power, high PRF QuasarR 355-40 laser from Spectra-Physics with TimeShiftTM technology for unique software adjustable pulse width, pulse splitting, and pulse shaping capabilities. The benefits of these features for micromachining include improved throughput and quality. Specific example and results of silicon scribing are described to demonstrate the processing benefits of the Quasar's available power, PRF, and TimeShift technology.

Tidal rhythmites infine-grained Carboniferous limestones, U.S.A.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Archer, A.W.; Feldman, H.R.

1994-01-01

Analyses of fine-grained limestones reveals that many exhibit fine-scale laminations. Laminations can be normally graded and consist of a coarser-grained lower part and a finer-grained upper part. The upper part can also contain finely disseminated organic material. Despite the similarities of such graded laminae to yearly varves and turbidites, it can be demonstrated by use of laminae-thickness periodicities that some graded laminae are reasonably interpreted as the product of tidal processes. Within siliciclastic systems, modern analogues of such processes are available for comparisons. In fine-grained facies of the Salem Limestone (Visean; Indiana, U.S.A.), periodicities observed within sequential-laminae thicknesses indicate a dominant control by neap-spring tidal processes. Similarly, laminae within limestones of the vertebrate-bearing Hamilton paleochannel (Stephanian; Kansas, U.S.) exhibit similar features, including fine-scale tidal bundles. This limestone is noted for the abundance of articulated fish fossils. Carbonates containing articulated fish from the Wild Cow Formation (Stephanian; New Mexico, U.S.), exhibit diffuse laminations; however, closely associated siliciclastic mudstones contain laminae that exhibit tidal periodicities. There are many similarities between tidal periodicities and patterns of lamination thicknesses of these rocks. A tidal interpretation for these rocks allows for localized, very rapid rates of deposition. Such rapid deposition may, in part, help to explain how articulated fish and other vertebrates can become preserved within such fine-grained limestones. ?? 1994.

An Investigation of the Fine Spatial Structure of Meteor Streams Using the Relational Database ``Meteor''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karpov, A. V.; Yumagulov, E. Z.

2003-05-01

We have restored and ordered the archive of meteor observations carried out with a meteor radar complex ``KGU-M5'' since 1986. A relational database has been formed under the control of the Database Management System (DBMS) Oracle 8. We also improved and tested a statistical method for studying the fine spatial structure of meteor streams with allowance for the specific features of application of the DBMS. Statistical analysis of the results of observations made it possible to obtain information about the substance distribution in the Quadrantid, Geminid, and Perseid meteor streams.

Surface features on Mars: Ground-based albedo and radar compared with Mariner 9 topography

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frey, H.

1973-01-01

Earth-based albedo maps of Mars were compared with Mariner 9 television data and ground-based radar profiles to investigate the nature of the bright and dark albedo features. Little correlation was found except at the boundaries of classical albedo features, where some topographic control is indicated. Wind-blown dust models for seasonal and secular albedo variations are supported, but it is not clear whether the fines are derived from bright or dark parent rock. Mars, like the Earth and Moon, has probably generated two distinct types of crustal material.

Evaluating the Large-Scale Environment of Extreme Events Using Reanalyses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bosilovich, M. G.; Schubert, S. D.; Koster, R. D.; da Silva, A. M., Jr.; Eichmann, A.

2014-12-01

Extreme conditions and events have always been a long standing concern in weather forecasting and national security. While some evidence indicates extreme weather will increase in global change scenarios, extremes are often related to the large scale atmospheric circulation, but also occurring infrequently. Reanalyses assimilate substantial amounts of weather data and a primary strength of reanalysis data is the representation of the large-scale atmospheric environment. In this effort, we link the occurrences of extreme events or climate indicators to the underlying regional and global weather patterns. Now, with greater than 3o years of data, reanalyses can include multiple cases of extreme events, and thereby identify commonality among the weather to better characterize the large-scale to global environment linked to the indicator or extreme event. Since these features are certainly regionally dependent, and also, the indicators of climate are continually being developed, we outline various methods to analyze the reanalysis data and the development of tools to support regional evaluation of the data. Here, we provide some examples of both individual case studies and composite studies of similar events. For example, we will compare the large scale environment for Northeastern US extreme precipitation with that of highest mean precipitation seasons. Likewise, southerly winds can shown to be a major contributor to very warm days in the Northeast winter. While most of our development has involved NASA's MERRA reanalysis, we are also looking forward to MERRA-2 which includes several new features that greatly improve the representation of weather and climate, especially for the regions and sectors involved in the National Climate Assessment.

An Analysis of Turn-Taking and Backchannels Based on Prosodic and Syntactic Features in Japanese Map Task Dialogs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koiso, Hanae; Horiuchi, Yasuo; Tutiya, Syun; Ichikawa, Akira; Den, Yasuharu

1998-01-01

Investigates syntactic and prosodic features of speakers' speech at points where turn-taking and backchannels occur, focusing on an analysis of Japanese spontaneous dialogs. The study shows that in both turn-taking and backchannels, some instances of syntactic features make extremely strong contributions, and syntax has a stronger contribution…

Heat budget of ionospheric electrons

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prasad, S. S.; Schneck, L. J.

1976-01-01

Heat input calculations were detached from solar extreme UV data and monatomic oxygen densities were derived from simultaneously measured data sets (ion composition 146-191 km) in a study of the heat budget of ionosphere electrons. Earlier inferences that cooling predominates over heating are supported. A search for additional heat sources or a revision of the cooling rates is recommended, by way of balancing the heat budget. Importance is attached to electron cooling by fine structure excitation of monatomic oxygen.

Extremely fine structured cathode for solid oxide fuel cells using Sr-doped LaMnO3 and Y2O3-stabilized ZrO2 nano-composite powder synthesized by spray pyrolysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shimada, Hiroyuki; Yamaguchi, Toshiaki; Sumi, Hirofumi; Nomura, Katsuhiro; Yamaguchi, Yuki; Fujishiro, Yoshinobu

2017-02-01

A solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) for high power density operation was developed with a microstructure-controlled cathode using a nano-composite powder of Sr-doped LaMnO3 (LSM) and Y2O3-stabilized ZrO2 (YSZ) synthesized by spray pyrolysis. The individual LSM-YSZ nano-composite particles, formed by crystalline and amorphous nano-size LSM and YSZ particles, showed spherical morphology with uniform particle size. The use of this powder for cathode material led to an extremely fine microstructure, in which all the LSM and YSZ grains (approximately 100-200 nm) were highly dispersed and formed their own network structures. This microstructure was due to the two phase electrode structure control using the powder, namely, nano-order level in each particle and micro-order level between particles. An anode-supported SOFC with the LSM-YSZ cathode using humidified H2 as fuel and ambient air as oxidant exhibited high power densities, such as 1.29 W cm-2 under a voltage of 0.75 V and a maximum power density of 2.65 W cm-2 at 800 °C. Also, the SOFC could be stably operated for 250 h with no degradation, even at a high temperature of 800 °C.

Segmentation of prostate boundaries from ultrasound images using statistical shape model.

PubMed

Shen, Dinggang; Zhan, Yiqiang; Davatzikos, Christos

2003-04-01

This paper presents a statistical shape model for the automatic prostate segmentation in transrectal ultrasound images. A Gabor filter bank is first used to characterize the prostate boundaries in ultrasound images in both multiple scales and multiple orientations. The Gabor features are further reconstructed to be invariant to the rotation of the ultrasound probe and incorporated in the prostate model as image attributes for guiding the deformable segmentation. A hierarchical deformation strategy is then employed, in which the model adaptively focuses on the similarity of different Gabor features at different deformation stages using a multiresolution technique, i.e., coarse features first and fine features later. A number of successful experiments validate the algorithm.

FIELD SAMPLING OF RESIDUAL AVIATION GASOLINE IN SANDY SOIL

EPA Science Inventory

Two complimentary field sampling methods for the determination of residual aviation gasoline content in the contaminated capillary fringe of a fine, uniform, sandy soil were investigated. The first method featured filed extrusion of core barrels into pint size Mason jars, while ...

Caught on the Web

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Isakson, Carol

2005-01-01

In this article, the author presents several Web sites supporting electronic presentation skills. The sites featured here will help fine-tune one's skills in modeling effective presentations and provide suggestions for managing student presentations meeting National Educational Technology Standards (NETS). Most use PowerPoint, the current industry…

Investigation of features of plastic deformation and fracture of fine-crystalline V-4Ti-4Cr alloy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Grinyaev, Konstantin V., E-mail: kvgrinyaev@inbox.ru; Tyumentsev, Alexander N., E-mail: tyuments@phys.tsu.ru; Siberian Physical-Technical Institute, Tomsk, 634050

2014-11-14

With the use of transmission electron microscopy the investigation of defect substructure was carried out in the V-4Ti-4Cr-(C, N, O) alloy with disperse strengthening (by nanoparticles of oxy-carbo-nitride phase) after deformation by active tension at temperatures of 20 and 800 °C. It has been shown that an important feature of plastic deformation is deformation localization with crystal lattice reorientation.

Chromatic information and feature detection in fast visual analysis

DOE PAGES

Del Viva, Maria M.; Punzi, Giovanni; Shevell, Steven K.; ...

2016-08-01

The visual system is able to recognize a scene based on a sketch made of very simple features. This ability is likely crucial for survival, when fast image recognition is necessary, and it is believed that a primal sketch is extracted very early in the visual processing. Such highly simplified representations can be sufficient for accurate object discrimination, but an open question is the role played by color in this process. Rich color information is available in natural scenes, yet artist's sketches are usually monochromatic; and, black-andwhite movies provide compelling representations of real world scenes. Also, the contrast sensitivity ofmore » color is low at fine spatial scales. We approach the question from the perspective of optimal information processing by a system endowed with limited computational resources. We show that when such limitations are taken into account, the intrinsic statistical properties of natural scenes imply that the most effective strategy is to ignore fine-scale color features and devote most of the bandwidth to gray-scale information. We find confirmation of these information-based predictions from psychophysics measurements of fast-viewing discrimination of natural scenes. As a result, we conclude that the lack of colored features in our visual representation, and our overall low sensitivity to high-frequency color components, are a consequence of an adaptation process, optimizing the size and power consumption of our brain for the visual world we live in.« less

Chromatic information and feature detection in fast visual analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Del Viva, Maria M.; Punzi, Giovanni; Shevell, Steven K.

The visual system is able to recognize a scene based on a sketch made of very simple features. This ability is likely crucial for survival, when fast image recognition is necessary, and it is believed that a primal sketch is extracted very early in the visual processing. Such highly simplified representations can be sufficient for accurate object discrimination, but an open question is the role played by color in this process. Rich color information is available in natural scenes, yet artist's sketches are usually monochromatic; and, black-andwhite movies provide compelling representations of real world scenes. Also, the contrast sensitivity ofmore » color is low at fine spatial scales. We approach the question from the perspective of optimal information processing by a system endowed with limited computational resources. We show that when such limitations are taken into account, the intrinsic statistical properties of natural scenes imply that the most effective strategy is to ignore fine-scale color features and devote most of the bandwidth to gray-scale information. We find confirmation of these information-based predictions from psychophysics measurements of fast-viewing discrimination of natural scenes. As a result, we conclude that the lack of colored features in our visual representation, and our overall low sensitivity to high-frequency color components, are a consequence of an adaptation process, optimizing the size and power consumption of our brain for the visual world we live in.« less

A Modelling Approach on Fine Particle Spatial Distribution for Street Canyons in Asian Residential Community

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ling, Hong; Lung, Shih-Chun Candice; Uhrner, Ulrich

2016-04-01

Rapidly increasing urban pollution poses severe health risks.Especially fine particles pollution is considered to be closely related to respiratory and cardiovascular disease. In this work, ambient fine particles are studied in street canyons of a typical Asian residential community using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) dispersion modelling approach. The community is characterised by an artery road with a busy traffic flow of about 4000 light vehicles (mainly cars and motorcycles) per hour at rush hours, three streets with hundreds light vehicles per hour at rush hours and several small lanes with less traffic. The objective is to study the spatial distribution of the ambient fine particle concentrations within micro-environments, in order to assess fine particle exposure of the people living in the community. The GRAL modelling system is used to simulate and assess the emission and dispersion of the traffic-related fine particles within the community. Traffic emission factors and traffic situation is assigned using both field observation and local emissions inventory data. High resolution digital elevation data (DEM) and building height data are used to resolve the topographical features. Air quality monitoring and mobile monitoring within the community is used to validate the simulation results. By using this modelling approach, the dispersion of fine particles in street canyons is simulated; the impact of wind condition and street orientation are investigated; the contributions of car and motorcycle emissions are quantified respectively; the residents' exposure level of fine particles is assessed. The study is funded by "Taiwan Megacity Environmental Research (II)-chemistry and environmental impacts of boundary layer aerosols (Year 2-3) (103-2111-M-001-001-); Spatial variability and organic markers of aerosols (Year 3)(104-2111-M-001 -005 -)"

Pancreatic mixed serous neuroendocrine neoplasm with clear cells leading to diagnosis of von Hippel Lindau disease.

PubMed

Kakkar, Aanchal; Sharma, Mehar C; Yadav, Rajni; Panwar, Rajesh; Mathur, Sandeep R; Iyer, Venkateswaran K; Sahni, Peush

2016-08-01

Mixed serous neuroendocrine neoplasms are extremely rare tumors that are usually seen in female patients and are often associated with von Hippel Lindau (VHL) disease. We describe the case of a 38-year-old male who presented with complaints of anorexia, weight loss, and abdominal pain. CT abdomen showed a mass in the head of the pancreas, multiple small nodules in the body of pancreas, and bilateral adrenal masses. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) from the mass showed features of a neuroendocrine tumor, with many of the cells demonstrating abundant clear cytoplasm. Histopathological examination of the pancreaticoduodenectomy specimen showed a mixed serous neuroendocrine neoplasm with two components viz. serous cystadenoma and neuroendocrine tumor (NET) World Health Organization (WHO) grade 2. In addition, he was diagnosed to have bilateral pheochromocytomas and a paraganglioma. The synchronicity of these tumors suggested the possibility of VHL disease. Thus, identification of a NET with clear cells or of a mixed serous neuroendocrine neoplasm should raise suspicion of VHL disease. In a mixed tumor, FNAC may identify only one of the two components. Thorough processing of all pancreatic serous tumors for pathological examination is recommended, as NET may occur as a small nodule within the serous cystadenoma. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of a 3D diamond detector for medical radiation dosimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanxheri, K.; Servoli, L.; Oh, A.; Munoz Sanchez, F.; Forcolin, G. T.; Murphy, S. A.; Aitkenhead, A.; Moore, C. J.; Morozzi, A.; Passeri, D.; Bellini, M.; Corsi, C.; Lagomarsino, S.; Sciortino, S.

2017-01-01

Synthetic diamond has several properties that are particularly suited to applications in medical radiation dosimetry. It is tissue equivalent, not toxic and shows a high resistance to radiation damage, low leakage current and stability of response. It is an electrical insulator, robust and realizable in small size; due to these features there are several examples of diamond devices, mainly planar single-crystalline chemical vapor depositation (sCVD) diamond, used for relative dose measurement in photon beams. Thanks to a new emerging technology, diamond devices with 3-dimensional structures are produced by using laser pulses to create graphitic paths in the diamond bulk. The necessary bias voltage to operate such detector decreases considerably while the signal response and radiation resistance increase. In order to evaluate the suitability of this new technology for measuring the dose delivered by radiotherapy beams in oncology a 3D polycrystalline (pCVD) diamond detector designed for single charged particle detection has been tested and the photon beam profile has been studied. The good linearity and high sensitivity to the dose observed in the 3D diamond, opens the way to the possibility of realizing a finely segmented device with the potential for dose distribution measurement in a single exposure for small field dosimetry that nowadays is still extremely challenging.

Adaptive optics to enhance target recognition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McAulay, Alastair D.

2012-06-01

Target recognition can be enhanced by reducing image degradation due to atmospheric turbulence. This is accomplished by an adaptive optic system. We discuss the forms of degradation when a target is viewed through the atmosphere1: scintillation from ground targets on a hot day in visible or infrared light; beam spreading and wavering around in time; atmospheric turbulence caused by motion of the target or by weather. In the case of targets we can use a beacon laser that reflects back from the target into a wavefront detector to measure the effects of turbulence on propagation to and from the target before imaging.1 A deformable mirror then corrects the wavefront shape of the transmitted, reflected or scattered data for enhanced imaging. Further, recognition of targets is enhanced by performing accurate distance measurements to localized parts of the target using lidar. Distance is obtained by sending a short pulse to the target and measuring the time for the pulse to return. There is inadequate time to scan the complete field of view so that the beam must be steered to regions of interest such as extremities of the image during image recognition. Distance is particularly valuable to recognize fine features in range along the target or when segmentation is required to separate a target from background or from other targets. We discuss the issues involved.

Evolutionary conservation and regulation of particular alternative splicing events in plant SR proteins

PubMed Central

Kalyna, Maria; Lopato, Sergiy; Voronin, Viktor; Barta, Andrea

2006-01-01

Alternative splicing is an important mechanism for fine tuning of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. SR proteins govern splice site selection and spliceosome assembly. The Arabidopsis genome encodes 19 SR proteins, several of which have no orthologues in metazoan. Three of the plant specific subfamilies are characterized by the presence of a relatively long alternatively spliced intron located in their first RNA recognition motif, which potentially results in an extremely truncated protein. In atRSZ33, a member of the RS2Z subfamily, this alternative splicing event was shown to be autoregulated. Here we show that atRSp31, a member of the RS subfamily, does not autoregulate alternative splicing of its similarily positioned intron. Interestingly, this alternative splicing event is regulated by atRSZ33. We demonstrate that the positions of these long introns and their capability for alternative splicing are conserved from green algae to flowering plants. Moreover, in particular alternative splicing events the splicing signals are embedded into highly conserved sequences. In different taxa, these conserved sequences occur in at least one gene within a subfamily. The evolutionary preservation of alternative splice forms together with highly conserved intron features argues for additional functions hidden in the genes of these plant-specific SR proteins. PMID:16936312

CONVERGING SUPERGRANULAR FLOWS AND THE FORMATION OF CORONAL PLUMES

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Y.-M.; Warren, H. P.; Muglach, K., E-mail: yi.wang@nrl.navy.mil, E-mail: harry.warren@nrl.navy.mil, E-mail: karin.muglach@nasa.gov

Earlier studies have suggested that coronal plumes are energized by magnetic reconnection between unipolar flux concentrations and nearby bipoles, even though magnetograms sometimes show very little minority-polarity flux near the footpoints of plumes. Here we use high-resolution extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) images and magnetograms from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) to clarify the relationship between plume emission and the underlying photospheric field. We find that plumes form where unipolar network elements inside coronal holes converge to form dense clumps, and fade as the clumps disperse again. The converging flows also carry internetwork fields of both polarities. Although the minority-polarity flux is sometimesmore » barely visible in the magnetograms, the corresponding EUV images almost invariably show loop-like features in the core of the plumes, with the fine structure changing on timescales of minutes or less. We conclude that the SDO observations are consistent with a model in which plume emission originates from interchange reconnection in converging flows, with the plume lifetime being determined by the ∼1 day evolutionary timescale of the supergranular network. Furthermore, the presence of large EUV bright points and/or ephemeral regions is not a necessary precondition for the formation of plumes, which can be energized even by the weak, mixed-polarity internetwork fields swept up by converging flows.« less

Gravitationally Induced Entanglement between Two Massive Particles is Sufficient Evidence of Quantum Effects in Gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marletto, C.; Vedral, V.

2017-12-01

All existing quantum-gravity proposals are extremely hard to test in practice. Quantum effects in the gravitational field are exceptionally small, unlike those in the electromagnetic field. The fundamental reason is that the gravitational coupling constant is about 43 orders of magnitude smaller than the fine structure constant, which governs light-matter interactions. For example, detecting gravitons—the hypothetical quanta of the gravitational field predicted by certain quantum-gravity proposals—is deemed to be practically impossible. Here we adopt a radically different, quantum-information-theoretic approach to testing quantum gravity. We propose witnessing quantumlike features in the gravitational field, by probing it with two masses each in a superposition of two locations. First, we prove that any system (e.g., a field) mediating entanglement between two quantum systems must be quantum. This argument is general and does not rely on any specific dynamics. Then, we propose an experiment to detect the entanglement generated between two masses via gravitational interaction. By our argument, the degree of entanglement between the masses is a witness of the field quantization. This experiment does not require any quantum control over gravity. It is also closer to realization than detecting gravitons or detecting quantum gravitational vacuum fluctuations.

Apparent Transition Behavior of Widely-Used Turbulence Models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rumsey, Christopher L.

2006-01-01

The Spalart-Allmaras and the Menter SST kappa-omega turbulence models are shown to have the undesirable characteristic that, for fully turbulent computations, a transition region can occur whose extent varies with grid density. Extremely fine two-dimensional grids over the front portion of an airfoil are used to demonstrate the effect. As the grid density is increased, the laminar region near the nose becomes larger. In the Spalart-Allmaras model this behavior is due to convergence to a laminar-behavior fixed point that occurs in practice when freestream turbulence is below some threshold. It is the result of a feature purposefully added to the original model in conjunction with a special trip function. This degenerate fixed point can also cause nonuniqueness regarding where transition initiates on a given grid. Consistent fully turbulent results can easily be achieved by either using a higher freestream turbulence level or by making a simple change to one of the model constants. Two-equation kappa-omega models, including the SST model, exhibit strong sensitivity to numerical resolution near the area where turbulence initiates. Thus, inconsistent apparent transition behavior with grid refinement in this case does not appear to stem from the presence of a degenerate fixed point. Rather, it is a fundamental property of the kappa-omega model itself, and is not easily remedied.

Gravitationally Induced Entanglement between Two Massive Particles is Sufficient Evidence of Quantum Effects in Gravity.

PubMed

Marletto, C; Vedral, V

2017-12-15

All existing quantum-gravity proposals are extremely hard to test in practice. Quantum effects in the gravitational field are exceptionally small, unlike those in the electromagnetic field. The fundamental reason is that the gravitational coupling constant is about 43 orders of magnitude smaller than the fine structure constant, which governs light-matter interactions. For example, detecting gravitons-the hypothetical quanta of the gravitational field predicted by certain quantum-gravity proposals-is deemed to be practically impossible. Here we adopt a radically different, quantum-information-theoretic approach to testing quantum gravity. We propose witnessing quantumlike features in the gravitational field, by probing it with two masses each in a superposition of two locations. First, we prove that any system (e.g., a field) mediating entanglement between two quantum systems must be quantum. This argument is general and does not rely on any specific dynamics. Then, we propose an experiment to detect the entanglement generated between two masses via gravitational interaction. By our argument, the degree of entanglement between the masses is a witness of the field quantization. This experiment does not require any quantum control over gravity. It is also closer to realization than detecting gravitons or detecting quantum gravitational vacuum fluctuations.

Apparent Transition Behavior of Widely-Used Turbulence Models

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rumsey, Christopher L.

2007-01-01

The Spalart-Allmaras and the Menter SST k-omega turbulence models are shown to have the undesirable characteristic that, for fully turbulent computations, a transition region can occur whose extent varies with grid density. Extremely fine two-dimensional grids over the front portion of an airfoil are used to demonstrate the effect. As the grid density is increased, the laminar region near the nose becomes larger. In the Spalart-Allmaras model this behavior is due to convergence to a laminar-behavior fixed point that occurs in practice when freestream turbulence is below some threshold. It is the result of a feature purposefully added to the original model in conjunction with a special trip function. This degenerate fixed point can also cause non-uniqueness regarding where transition initiates on a given grid. Consistent fully turbulent results can easily be achieved by either using a higher freestream turbulence level or by making a simple change to one of the model constants. Two-equation k-omega models, including the SST model, exhibit strong sensitivity to numerical resolution near the area where turbulence initiates. Thus, inconsistent apparent transition behavior with grid refinement in this case does not appear to stem from the presence of a degenerate fixed point. Rather, it is a fundamental property of the k-omega model itself, and is not easily remedied.

Are restored side channels sustainable aquatic habitat features? Predicting the potential persistence of side channels as aquatic habitats based on their fine sedimentation dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riquier, Jérémie; Piégay, Hervé; Lamouroux, Nicolas; Vaudor, Lise

2017-10-01

The restoration of side channels (also referred to as abandoned channels, former channels, floodplain channels, or side arms) is increasingly implemented to improve the ecological integrity of river-floodplain systems. However, the design of side channel restoration projects remains poorly informed by theory or empirical observations despite the increasing number of projects. Moreover, feedback regarding the hydromorphological adjustment of restored channels is rarely documented, making it difficult to predict channel persistence as aquatic habitats. In this study, we analyze the spatial and temporal patterns of fine sediment deposition (< 2 mm) in 16 side channels of the Rhône River, France, restored in 1999-2006 by a combination of dredging and/or partial to full reconnection of their extremities and as a by-product of an increase in minimum flow through the bypassed main channels. We develop prediction tools to assess the persistence of restored channels as aquatic habitats, using between five and seven monitoring surveys per channel (spanning 7-15 years after restoration). Observed channel-averaged sedimentation rates ranged from 0 to 40.3 cm·y- 1 and reached 90.3 cm·y- 1 locally. Some channels exhibited a significant decline of sedimentation rates through time, whereas others maintained rather constant rates. Scouring processes (i.e., self-rejuvenation capacity) were occasionally documented in 15 channels. Six of the 16 studied channels appeared to be self-sustaining. The 10 others accumulated more and more fine sediment deposits after restoration. Parametric modeling of sedimentation rates suggested that among these 10 channels, four have long life-durations (i.e., more than a century), three have intermediate life-durations (i.e., likely between three and nine decades), and three others have short life-durations (i.e., likely between two and five decades). Observed channel-averaged sedimentation rates can be predicted from the frequency and magnitude (i.e., maximum shear stress) of upstream overflow events and the maximum intensity of backflow events (i.e., maximum backflow capacity). These predictors reflect the dominant role of side channel geometry (i.e., morphology of the upstream alluvial plug, slope conditions) in controlling their flooding regime. These models applied successfully to a wide range of channel morphologies and can be used to quantify a priori the likely effects and the sustainability of side channel restoration.

Extraction of Built-Up Areas Using Convolutional Neural Networks and Transfer Learning from SENTINEL-2 Satellite Images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bramhe, V. S.; Ghosh, S. K.; Garg, P. K.

2018-04-01

With rapid globalization, the extent of built-up areas is continuously increasing. Extraction of features for classifying built-up areas that are more robust and abstract is a leading research topic from past many years. Although, various studies have been carried out where spatial information along with spectral features has been utilized to enhance the accuracy of classification. Still, these feature extraction techniques require a large number of user-specific parameters and generally application specific. On the other hand, recently introduced Deep Learning (DL) techniques requires less number of parameters to represent more abstract aspects of the data without any manual effort. Since, it is difficult to acquire high-resolution datasets for applications that require large scale monitoring of areas. Therefore, in this study Sentinel-2 image has been used for built-up areas extraction. In this work, pre-trained Convolutional Neural Networks (ConvNets) i.e. Inception v3 and VGGNet are employed for transfer learning. Since these networks are trained on generic images of ImageNet dataset which are having very different characteristics from satellite images. Therefore, weights of networks are fine-tuned using data derived from Sentinel-2 images. To compare the accuracies with existing shallow networks, two state of art classifiers i.e. Gaussian Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Back-Propagation Neural Network (BP-NN) are also implemented. Both SVM and BP-NN gives 84.31 % and 82.86 % overall accuracies respectively. Inception-v3 and VGGNet gives 89.43 % of overall accuracy using fine-tuned VGGNet and 92.10 % when using Inception-v3. The results indicate high accuracy of proposed fine-tuned ConvNets on a 4-channel Sentinel-2 dataset for built-up area extraction.

Fine-scale features on bioreplicated decoys of the emerald ash borer provide necessary visual verisimilitude

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Domingue, Michael J.; Pulsifer, Drew P.; Narkhede, Mahesh S.; Engel, Leland G.; Martín-Palma, Raúl J.; Kumar, Jayant; Baker, Thomas C.; Lakhtakia, Akhlesh

2014-03-01

The emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis, is an invasive tree-killing pest in North America. Like other buprestid beetles, it has an iridescent coloring, produced by a periodically layered cuticle whose reflectance peaks at 540 nm wavelength. The males perform a visually mediated ritualistic mating flight directly onto females poised on sunlit leaves. We attempted to evoke this behavior using artificial visual decoys of three types. To fabricate decoys of the first type, a polymer sheet coated with a Bragg-stack reflector was loosely stamped by a bioreplicating die. For decoys of the second type, a polymer sheet coated with a Bragg-stack reflector was heavily stamped by the same die and then painted green. Every decoy of these two types had an underlying black absorber layer. Decoys of the third type were produced by a rapid prototyping machine and painted green. Fine-scale features were absent on the third type. Experiments were performed in an American ash forest infested with EAB, and a European oak forest home to a similar pest, the two-spotted oak borer (TSOB), Agrilus biguttatus. When pinned to leaves, dead EAB females, dead TSOB females, and bioreplicated decoys of both types often evoked the complete ritualized flight behavior. Males also initiated approaches to the rapidly prototyped decoy, but would divert elsewhere without making contact. The attraction of the bioreplicated decoys was also demonstrated by providing a high dc voltage across the decoys that stunned and killed approaching beetles. Thus, true bioreplication with fine-scale features is necessary to fully evoke ritualized visual responses in insects, and provides an opportunity for developing insecttrapping technologies.

Reaction process of {alpha} {yields} {gamma} massive transformation in Ti-rich TiAl alloy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kumagai, T.; Abe, E.; Nakamura, M.

1995-08-01

Reaction sequence of the massive transformation from the high-temperature {alpha}-Ti phase to the {gamma}-TiAl phase ({gamma}{sub m}) in a Ti-48at.% Al alloy has been examined in terms of optical and transmission electron microscopes. Both transformed and untransformed regions were macroscopically observed in the sample quenched from the high-temperature {alpha} phase field, when the sample was held there for a extended period of time prior to quenching. The transformed region consists of randomly oriented fine {gamma} single phase grains, in which many thermal anti-phase domains (TAPDs), together with a number of stacking faults were observed. In contrast, the untransformed region comprisesmore » extremely fine lamellae of the {gamma} and {alpha}{sub 2}-Ti{sub 3}Al phases, and the {gamma} plates were found to run through the TAPDs caused by {alpha} {yields} {alpha}{sub 2} ordering. Subsequent aging at 1,273 K causes the microstructure change in the untransformed region from {alpha}{sub 2}/{gamma} lamellae to {gamma}/{gamma} lamellae spontaneously and expands the {gamma}{sub m} region. These observations suggest that the {alpha} {yields} {gamma}{sub m} transformation proceeds through formation of fine {gamma} plates.« less

Annealing Effects on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Ultrafine-Grained Al Composites Reinforced with Nano-Al2O3 by Rotary Swaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Cunguang; Wang, Wenwen; Guo, Zhimeng; Sun, Chunbao; Volinsky, Alex A.; Paley, Vladislav

2018-03-01

Microstructure evolution and variations in mechanical properties of Al-Al2O3 nanocomposite produced by powder metallurgy were investigated and compared with commercially pure aluminum (Al-1050) after furnace annealing. Fine gas-atomized Al powder compacts were first sintered in flowing nitrogen, subsequently consolidated into wires by rotary swaging and eventually annealed at 300 and 500 °C for 24 h each. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectroscopy was utilized to document the microstructure evolution. Rotary swaging was proven to lead to a marked decrease in grain size. After heavy swaging to true deformation degree of φ = 6 and annealing at 500 °C, obvious recrystallization was observed at Al-1050's existing grain boundaries and the crystals began to grow perpendicular to the flow direction. In the Al-Al2O3 nanocomposite, fabricated from d 50 = 6 μm Al powder, recrystallization partially occurred, while grains were still extremely fine. Due to the dual role of fine-grained Al2O3 dispersion strengthening, the nanocomposite showed improved mechanical performance in terms of tensile strength, approximately twice higher than Al-1050 after annealing at 500 °C.

Developments in the recovery of colour in fine art prints using spatial image processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rizzi, A.; Parraman, C.

2010-06-01

Printmakers have at their disposal a wide range of colour printing processes. The majority of artists will utilise high quality materials with the expectation that the best materials and pigments will ensure image permanence. However, as many artists have experienced, this is not always the case. Inks, papers and materials can deteriorate over time. For artists and conservators who need to restore colour or tone to a print could benefit from the assistance of spatial colour enhancement tools. This paper studies two collections from the same edition of fine art prints that were made in 1991. The first edition has been kept in an archive and not exposed to light. The second edition has been framed and exposed to light for about 18 years. Previous experiments using colour enhancement methods [9,10] have involved a series of photographs that had been taken under poor or extreme lighting conditions, fine art works, scanned works. There are a range of colour enhancement methods: Retinex, RSR, ACE, Histogram Equalisation, Auto Levels, which are described in this paper. In this paper we will concentrate on the ACE algorithm and use a range of parameters to process the printed images and describe these results.

Positioning performance of a maglev fine positioning system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wronosky, J.B.; Smith, T.G.; Jordan, J.D.

1996-12-01

A wafer positioning system was recently developed by Sandia National Laboratories for an Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUVL) research tool. The system, which utilizes a magnetically levitated fine stage to provide ultra-precise positioning in all six degrees of freedom, incorporates technological improvements resulting from four years of prototype development experience. System enhancements, implemented on a second generation design for an ARPA National Center for Advanced Information Component Manufacturing (NCAICM) project, introduced active structural control for the levitated structure of the system. Magnetic levitation (maglev) is emerging as an important technology for wafer positioning systems in advanced lithography applications. The advantages ofmore » maglev stem from the absence of physical contact. The resulting lack of friction enables accurate, fast positioning. Maglev systems are mechanically simple, accomplishing full six degree-of-freedom suspension and control with a minimum of moving parts. Power-efficient designs, which reduce the possibility of thermal distortion of the platen, are achievable. Manufacturing throughput will be improved in future systems with the addition of active structural control of the positioning stages. This paper describes the design, implementation, and functional capability of the maglev fine positioning system. Specifics regarding performance design goals and test results are presented.« less

Fine resolution chronology based on initial Sr-87/Sr-86

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stewart, B. W.; Papanastassiou, D. A.; Capo, R. C.; Wasserburg, G. J.

1993-01-01

It has been recognized that small variations in initial Sr-87/Sr-86 (Sr(sub I)), can provide a fine scale relative chronology for the chemical fractionation of materials with low Rb/Sr from parent reservoirs with high Rb/Sr. Similarly, Sr(sub I), as determined for low Rb/Sr phases in meteorites, may permit a fine resolution chronology of the recrystallization or metamorphism of planetary materials. For the establishment of a primitive Sr-87/Sr-86 chronology, it is important to search for samples with extremely low Rb/Sr for which the measured Sr-87/Sr-86 is below BABI, in which case the primitive nature of the Sr can be directly established. Using the measured Rb/Sr to calculate an initial Sr-87/Sr-86 can introduce substantial uncertainty if the Rb-Sr are disturbed. We report Sr-87/Sr-86 in plagioclase from silicate pebbles from the Vaca Muerta mesosiderite on which we have reported Sm-147-Nd-143 and Ne-142 correlations. For the purpose of cross-calibration with our previous work we have performed extensive new measurements on Angra dos Reis and on anorthite from Moore County, which have very low Rb/Sr and primitive Sr-87/Sr-86.

Complex extreme learning machine applications in terahertz pulsed signals feature sets.

PubMed

Yin, X-X; Hadjiloucas, S; Zhang, Y

2014-11-01

This paper presents a novel approach to the automatic classification of very large data sets composed of terahertz pulse transient signals, highlighting their potential use in biochemical, biomedical, pharmaceutical and security applications. Two different types of THz spectra are considered in the classification process. Firstly a binary classification study of poly-A and poly-C ribonucleic acid samples is performed. This is then contrasted with a difficult multi-class classification problem of spectra from six different powder samples that although have fairly indistinguishable features in the optical spectrum, they also possess a few discernable spectral features in the terahertz part of the spectrum. Classification is performed using a complex-valued extreme learning machine algorithm that takes into account features in both the amplitude as well as the phase of the recorded spectra. Classification speed and accuracy are contrasted with that achieved using a support vector machine classifier. The study systematically compares the classifier performance achieved after adopting different Gaussian kernels when separating amplitude and phase signatures. The two signatures are presented as feature vectors for both training and testing purposes. The study confirms the utility of complex-valued extreme learning machine algorithms for classification of the very large data sets generated with current terahertz imaging spectrometers. The classifier can take into consideration heterogeneous layers within an object as would be required within a tomographic setting and is sufficiently robust to detect patterns hidden inside noisy terahertz data sets. The proposed study opens up the opportunity for the establishment of complex-valued extreme learning machine algorithms as new chemometric tools that will assist the wider proliferation of terahertz sensing technology for chemical sensing, quality control, security screening and clinic diagnosis. Furthermore, the proposed algorithm should also be very useful in other applications requiring the classification of very large datasets. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exploring the fine structure at the limb in coronal holes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Karovska, Magarita; Blundell, Solon F.; Habbal, Shadia Rifai

1994-01-01

The fine structure of the solar limb in coronal holes is explored at temperatures ranging from 10(exp 4) to 10(exp 6) K. An image enhancement algorithm orignally developed for solar eclipse observations is applied to a number of simultaneous multiwavelength observations made with the Harvard Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrometer experiment on Skylab. The enhanced images reveal the presence of filamentary structures above the limb with a characteristic separation of approximately 10 to 15 sec . Some of the structures extend from the solar limb into the corona to at least 4 min above the solar limb. The brightness of these structures changes as a function of height above the limb. The brightest emission is associated with spiculelike structures in the proximity of the limb. The emission characteristic of high-temperature plasma is not cospatial with the emission at lower temperatures, indicating the presence of different temperature plasmas in the field of view.

Anti-anthropic solutions to the cosmic coincidence problem

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fedrow, Joseph M.; Griest, Kim, E-mail: j.m.fedrow@gmail.com, E-mail: kgriest@ucsd.edu

2014-01-01

A cosmological constant fits all current dark energy data, but requires two extreme fine tunings, both of which are currently explained by anthropic arguments. Here we discuss anti-anthropic solutions to one of these problems: the cosmic coincidence problem- that today the dark energy density is nearly equal to the matter density. We replace the ensemble of Universes used in the anthropic solution with an ensemble of tracking scalar fields that do not require fine-tuning. This not only does away with the coincidence problem, but also allows for a Universe that has a very different future than the one currently predictedmore » by a cosmological constant. These models also allow for transient periods of significant scalar field energy (SSFE) over the history of the Universe that can give very different observational signatures as compared with a cosmological constant, and so can be confirmed or disproved in current and upcoming experiments.« less

Synchrotron FTIR micro-spectroscopy for structural analysis of Lewy bodies in the brain of Parkinson’s disease patients

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Araki, Katsuya; Yagi, Naoto; Ikemoto, Yuka; Yagi, Hisashi; Choong, Chi-Jing; Hayakawa, Hideki; Beck, Goichi; Sumi, Hisae; Fujimura, Harutoshi; Moriwaki, Taro; Nagai, Yoshitaka; Goto, Yuji; Mochizuki, Hideki

2015-12-01

Lewy bodies (LBs), which mainly consist of α-synuclein (α-syn), are neuropathological hallmarks of patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The fine structure of LBs is unknown, and LBs cannot be made artificially. Nevertheless, many studies have described fibrillisation using recombinant α-syn purified from E. coli. An extremely fundamental problem is whether the structure of LBs is the same as that of recombinant amyloid fibrils. Thus, we used synchrotron Fourier transform infrared micro-spectroscopy (FTIRM) to analyse the fine structure of LBs in the brain of PD patients. Our results showed a shift in the infrared spectrum that indicates abundance of a β-sheet-rich structure in LBs. Also, 2D infrared mapping of LBs revealed that the content of the β-sheet structure is higher in the halo than in the core, and the core contains a large amount of proteins and lipids.

6th International Conference on Nanomaterials by Severe Plastic Deformation (NanoSPD6)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2014-08-01

''NanoSPD'' means Nano-material by Severe Plastic Deformation (SPD), which is an efficient way to obtain bulk nano-structured materials. During SPD, the microstructure of the material is transformed into a very fine structure consisting of ultra fine grains (UFG) approaching even the nano-scale. SPD is different from classical large strain forming processes in two aspects: 1. The sample undergoes extremely large strains without significant change in its dimensions, 2. In most SPD processes high hydrostatic stress is applied which makes it possible to deform difficult-to-form materials. This conference is part of a series of conferences taking place every third year; the history of NanoSPD conferences began in 1999 in Moscow (Russia), followed by Vienna in 2002 (Austria), Fukuoka in 2005 (Japan), Goslar in 2008 (Germany), Nanjing in 2011 (China), and Metz in 2014 (France). The preface continues in the pdf.

Characteristics of Fe powders prepared by spray pyrolysis from a spray solution with ethylene glycol as the source material of heat pellet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koo, H. Y.; Kim, J. H.; Hong, S. K.; Ko, Y. N.; Jang, H. C.; Jung, D. S.; Han, J. M.; Hong, Y. J.; Kang, Y. C.; Kang, S. H.; Cho, S. B.

2012-06-01

Fe powders as the heat pellet material for thermal batteries are prepared from iron oxide powders obtained by spray pyrolysis from a spray solution of iron nitrate with ethylene glycol. The iron oxide powders with hollow and thin wall structure produce Fe powders with elongated structure and fine primary particle size at a low reducing temperature of 615 °C. The mean size of the primary Fe powders with elongated structure decreases with increasing concentration of ethylene glycol dissolved into the spray solution. The heat pellets prepared from the fine-size Fe powders with elongated structure have good ignition sensitivities below 1 watt. The heat pellets formed from the Fe powders obtained from the spray solution with 0.5 M EG have an extremely high burn rate of 26 cms-1.

Maximum efficiency of the collisional Penrose process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavskii, O. B.

2016-09-01

We consider the collision of two particles that move in the equatorial plane near a general stationary rotating axially symmetric extremal black hole. One of the particles is critical (with fine-tuned parameters) and moves in the outward direction. The second particle (usual, not fine-tuned) comes from infinity. We examine the efficiency η of the collisional Penrose process. There are two relevant cases here: a particle falling into a black hole after collision (i) is heavy or (ii) has a finite mass. We show that the maximum of η in case (ii) is less than or equal to that in case (i). It is argued that for superheavy particles, the bound applies to nonequatorial motion as well. As an example, we analyze collision in the Kerr-Newman background. When the bound is the same for processes (i) and (ii), η =3 for this metric. For the Kerr black hole, recent results in the literature are reproduced.

Origin of accretionary lapilli from the Pompeii and Avellino deposits of Vesuvius

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sheridan, M.F.; Wohletz, K.H.

1983-01-01

Accretionary lapilli from the Pompeii and Avellino Plinian ash deposits of Vesuvius consist of centimeter-sized spheroids composed of glass, crystal, and lithic fragments of submillimeter size. The typical structure of the lapilli consists of a central massive core surrounded by concentric layers of fine ash with concentrations of larger clasts and vesicles and a thin outer layer of dust. Clasts within the lapilli larger than 125 ..mu..m are extremely rare. The median grain-size of the fine ash is about 50 ..mu..m and the size-distribution is well sorted. Most constituent particles of accretionary lapilli display blocky shapes characteristic of grains producedmore » by phreatomagmatic hydroexplosions. We have used the scanning electron microscope (SEM) in conjunction with energy dispersive spectral analysis (EDS) to investigate the textural and chemical variation along traverses from the core to the rim of lapilli from Vesuvius.« less

Hidradenocarcinoma presenting as soft tissue mass: Case report with cytomorphologic description, histologic correlation, and differential diagnosis.

PubMed

Jinnah, Alexander H; Emory, Cynthia L; Mai, Nicholas H; Bergman, Simon; Salih, Ziyan T

2016-05-01

Hidradenocarcinoma (HAC) is a rare adenexal tumor with a propensity for the head and neck region and extremities. We report a case of hidradenocarcinnoma in a 56-year-old woman with a mass on her right palm sampled by fine-needle aspiration and later confirmed on histological examination. Fine-needle aspiration cytology revealed a dual population of cells including polyhedral eosinophilic cells and glycogen containing cells with pale/clear cytoplasm. The nuclei were pleomorphic with prominent nucleoli. Occassional papillary structures were identified on the cell block material. A series of immunohistochemical stains were performed and an adnexal neoplasm was suggested. The mass was resected. On histologic sections, infiltration into the adjacent soft tissue was identified. After an additional series of immunohistochemical stains, the diagnosis was confirmed as a HAC. Herein, we present our findings and discuss the differential diagnoses. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cornering natural SUSY at LHC Run II and beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buckley, Matthew R.; Feld, David; Macaluso, Sebastian; Monteux, Angelo; Shih, David

2017-08-01

We derive the latest constraints on various simplified models of natural SUSY with light higgsinos, stops and gluinos, using a detailed and comprehensive reinterpretation of the most recent 13 TeV ATLAS and CMS searches with ˜ 15 fb-1 of data. We discuss the implications of these constraints for fine-tuning of the electroweak scale. While the most "vanilla" version of SUSY (the MSSM with R-parity and flavor-degenerate sfermions) with 10% fine-tuning is ruled out by the current constraints, models with decoupled valence squarks or reduced missing energy can still be fully natural. However, in all of these models, the mediation scale must be extremely low ( <100 TeV). We conclude by considering the prospects for the high-luminosity LHC era, where we expect the current limits on particle masses to improve by up to ˜ 1 TeV, and discuss further model-building directions for natural SUSY that are motivated by this work.

The role of fine needle aspiration cytology in medical-surgical missions.

PubMed

Reyes, Cesar V; Reyes, Elisa A

2009-01-01

To relate a 6-year, short-term experience of utilizing fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) during medical-surgical missions in the impoverished areas of the Philippines. FNAC is a simple, accurate, fast and economical procedure and requires the simplest devices to implement. During medical-surgical missions to the poorest areas in the Third World countries, where there is almost complete lack of tissue processing and frozen section evaluation, and scarcity of laboratory testing, FNAC becomes a practical technique to use. FNAC in these situations plays an important role as an alternative diagnostic modality to surgery. Our week-long mission experience for 6 different years of successful application of FNAC is described. While the mission volunteers have gained extremely rewarding experience in these limited mission works, FNAC has proven to be a very useful adjunct in the delivery of short-term health care during medical-surgical treatment even in a less-than-ideal setting.

Effect of element size on the solution accuracies of finite-element heat transfer and thermal stress analyses of space shuttle orbiter

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ko, William L.; Olona, Timothy

1987-01-01

The effect of element size on the solution accuracies of finite-element heat transfer and thermal stress analyses of space shuttle orbiter was investigated. Several structural performance and resizing (SPAR) thermal models and NASA structural analysis (NASTRAN) structural models were set up for the orbiter wing midspan bay 3. The thermal model was found to be the one that determines the limit of finite-element fineness because of the limitation of computational core space required for the radiation view factor calculations. The thermal stresses were found to be extremely sensitive to a slight variation of structural temperature distributions. The minimum degree of element fineness required for the thermal model to yield reasonably accurate solutions was established. The radiation view factor computation time was found to be insignificant compared with the total computer time required for the SPAR transient heat transfer analysis.

Fine-grained leukocyte classification with deep residual learning for microscopic images.

PubMed

Qin, Feiwei; Gao, Nannan; Peng, Yong; Wu, Zizhao; Shen, Shuying; Grudtsin, Artur

2018-08-01

Leukocyte classification and cytometry have wide applications in medical domain, previous researches usually exploit machine learning techniques to classify leukocytes automatically. However, constrained by the past development of machine learning techniques, for example, extracting distinctive features from raw microscopic images are difficult, the widely used SVM classifier only has relative few parameters to tune, these methods cannot efficiently handle fine-grained classification cases when the white blood cells have up to 40 categories. Based on deep learning theory, a systematic study is conducted on finer leukocyte classification in this paper. A deep residual neural network based leukocyte classifier is constructed at first, which can imitate the domain expert's cell recognition process, and extract salient features robustly and automatically. Then the deep neural network classifier's topology is adjusted according to the prior knowledge of white blood cell test. After that the microscopic image dataset with almost one hundred thousand labeled leukocytes belonging to 40 categories is built, and combined training strategies are adopted to make the designed classifier has good generalization ability. The proposed deep residual neural network based classifier was tested on microscopic image dataset with 40 leukocyte categories. It achieves top-1 accuracy of 77.80%, top-5 accuracy of 98.75% during the training procedure. The average accuracy on the test set is nearly 76.84%. This paper presents a fine-grained leukocyte classification method for microscopic images, based on deep residual learning theory and medical domain knowledge. Experimental results validate the feasibility and effectiveness of our approach. Extended experiments support that the fine-grained leukocyte classifier could be used in real medical applications, assist doctors in diagnosing diseases, reduce human power significantly. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

355 nm UV laser patterning and post-processing of FR4 PCB for fine pitch components integration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dupont, F.; Stoukatch, S.; Laurent, P.; Dricot, S.; Kraft, M.

2018-01-01

Laser direct patterning of fine pitch features on standard PCB (Printed Circuit Board) was investigated. As a feasibility study, eight parameter sets were selected and the smallest achievable grooves and tracks were determined. Three regular FR4 (Flame Resistant 4) PCB substrates have been experimented with. The first two have respectively 18 μm and 35 μm bare copper conductive layer without finish while the third one has a 18 μm copper layer with ENIG (Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold) finish. Laser patterning of PCB conductive structure is a single step, maskless and purely dry operation expected to allow reaching fine pitch features, even on thick copper layers (≥ 18 μm) for which the traditional chemical wet processes encounter underetch problems. Aside PCB complete structuring, a second objective is to evaluate laser post-processing of standard patterned PCB as an economically viable technique to integrate a few fine pitch components on low cost PCBs. This process is suitable for prototyping and for small and medium series. The widths of the smallest grooves and tracks that we achieved were measured about 11 μm and 19 μm on 18 μm thick cooper layer, 13 μm and 39 μm on 35 μm thick cooper layer, and 11 μm and 38 μm on 18 μm cooper layer with ENIG finish. These values are well below what can be achieved with a wet process. Etching results are presented at high magnification both from the top and from a cross-sectioning perspective. The latter allows observation of the TAZ (Thermal Affected Zone) in the conductive layer and the damages in the FR4.

Morphology and processes associated with the accumulation of the fine-grained sediment deposit on the southern New England shelf

USGS Publications Warehouse

Twichell, David C.; McClennen, Charles E.; Butman, Bradford

1981-01-01

A 13,000 km2 area of the southern New England Continental Shelf which is covered by anomalously fine-grained sediment has been surveyed by means of high-resolution, seismic-reflection and side-scan sonar techniques to map its morphology and structure, and a near-bottom instrument system contributed to understanding present activity of the deposit. Seismic-reflection profiles show that the fine-grained deposit, which is as much as 13 m thick, has accumulated during the last transgression because it rests on a reflector that is geomorphically similar to and continuous with the Holocene transgressive sand sheet still exposed on the shelf to the west. The ridge and swale topography comprising the sand sheet on the shelf off New Jersey and Long Island are relict in origin as these same features are found buried under the fine sediment deposit. Southwestward migrating megaripples observed on the sonographs in the eastern part of the deposit are evidence that sediment is still actively accumulating in this area. In the western part of the deposit, where surface sediment is composed of silt plus clay, evidence of present sediment mobility consists of changes in the near-bottom, suspended-matter concentrations primarily associated with storms. Nantucket Shoals and Georges Bank are thought to be the sources for the fine-textured sediment. Storms and strong tidal currents in these shoal areas may still erode available fine-grained material, which then is transported westward by the mean drift to the southern New England Shelf, where a comparatively tranquil environment permits deposition of the fine material.

Identification of Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment using multimodal sparse hierarchical extreme learning machine.

PubMed

Kim, Jongin; Lee, Boreom

2018-05-07

Different modalities such as structural MRI, FDG-PET, and CSF have complementary information, which is likely to be very useful for diagnosis of AD and MCI. Therefore, it is possible to develop a more effective and accurate AD/MCI automatic diagnosis method by integrating complementary information of different modalities. In this paper, we propose multi-modal sparse hierarchical extreme leaning machine (MSH-ELM). We used volume and mean intensity extracted from 93 regions of interest (ROIs) as features of MRI and FDG-PET, respectively, and used p-tau, t-tau, and Aβ42 as CSF features. In detail, high-level representation was individually extracted from each of MRI, FDG-PET, and CSF using a stacked sparse extreme learning machine auto-encoder (sELM-AE). Then, another stacked sELM-AE was devised to acquire a joint hierarchical feature representation by fusing the high-level representations obtained from each modality. Finally, we classified joint hierarchical feature representation using a kernel-based extreme learning machine (KELM). The results of MSH-ELM were compared with those of conventional ELM, single kernel support vector machine (SK-SVM), multiple kernel support vector machine (MK-SVM) and stacked auto-encoder (SAE). Performance was evaluated through 10-fold cross-validation. In the classification of AD vs. HC and MCI vs. HC problem, the proposed MSH-ELM method showed mean balanced accuracies of 96.10% and 86.46%, respectively, which is much better than those of competing methods. In summary, the proposed algorithm exhibits consistently better performance than SK-SVM, ELM, MK-SVM and SAE in the two binary classification problems (AD vs. HC and MCI vs. HC). © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

THE 3–4  μ m SPECTRA OF JUPITER TROJAN ASTEROIDS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brown, M. E., E-mail: mbrown@caltech.edu

To date, reflectance spectra of Jupiter Trojan asteroids have revealed no distinctive absorption features. For this reason, the surface composition of these objects remains a subject of speculation. Spectra have revealed, however, that the Jupiter Trojan asteroids consist of two distinct sub-populations that differ in the optical to near-infrared colors. The origins and compositional differences between the two sub-populations remain unclear. Here, we report the results from a 2.2–3.8 μ m spectral survey of a collection of 16 Jupiter Trojan asteroids, divided equally between the two sub-populations. We find clear spectral absorption features centered around 3.1 μ m in themore » less-red population. Additional absorption consistent with that expected from organic materials might also be present. No such features are see in the red population. A strong correlation exists between the strength of the 3.1 μ m absorption feature and the optical to near-infrared color of the objects. While, traditionally, absorptions such as these in dark asteroids are modeled as being due to fine-grain water frost, we find it physically implausible that the special circumstances required to create such fine-grained frost would exist on a substantial fraction of the Jupiter Trojan asteroids. We suggest, instead, that the 3.1 μ m absorption on Trojans and other dark asteroids could be due to N–H stretch features. Additionally, we point out that reflectivities derived from WISE observations show a strong absorption beyond 4 μ m for both populations. The continuum of 3.1 μ m features and the common absorption beyond 4 μ m might suggest that both sub-populations of Jupiter Trojan asteroids formed in the same general region of the early solar system.« less

Techniques for Improved Retrospective Fine-scale Meteorology

EPA Science Inventory

Pleim-Xiu Land-Surface model (PX LSM) was developed for retrospective meteorological simulations to drive chemical transport models. One of the key features of the PX LSM is the indirect soil moisture and temperature nudging. The idea is to provide a three hourly 2-m temperature ...

Evaluation of shale embankment construction criteria : experimental feature : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1989-11-01

A 1.5 mile section of the Coos Bay - Roseburg Highway in Oregon was reconstructed in 1983. The project was located in an area where degradable fine-grained siltstone and sandstone would be encountered in the through cuts. After the construction of th...

Incisional Endometriosis: Diagnosed by Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology

PubMed Central

Veda, P; Srinivasaiah, M

2010-01-01

Incisional endometriosis (IE) is a rare entity reported in 0.03–1.08% of women following obstetric or gynecologic surgeries. Most cases reported in literature have appeared after cesarean sections and were often clinically mistaken for hernia, abscess, suture granuloma or lipoma. We hereby report a case of IE following a second trimester hysterotomy, which was diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC). Our patient was 26 years old, presenting with a mass over anterior abdominal wall, associated with incapacitating pain during each menstrual cycle. FNAC showed epithelial cells, stromal cells and hemosiderin laden macrophages. Based on the typical history, clinical and cytological features, the diagnosis of IE was established. Wide surgical excision was done and the resulting rectus sheath defect was repaired. Patient was followed for 6 months during which time she was symptom free. This article also reviews the spectrum of cytological features and the rare possibility of malignant transformation that can occur in IE. PMID:21346911

Hydatid cyst of parotid: Report of unusual cytological findings extending the cytomorphological spectrum.

PubMed

Arora, Vinod Kumar; Chopra, Neha; Singh, Poorva; Venugopal, Vasantha Kumar; Narang, Salil

2016-09-01

Hydatid disease is a zoonotic infestation caused by larval cestode of genus Echinococcus. Cystic form of this infection mostly involves liver and lung. Hydatid disease of the parotid gland is very rare even in endemic areas and is often clinically mistaken for parotid tumors or cysts. The presence of protoscolices, laminated membranes, and isolated hooklets are characteristic cytological features observed on fine-needle aspirate from hydatid cysts. We report unusual cytological features from a hydatid cyst of parotid in a 13-year-old girl. She presented with a slowly enlarging hard mass in left parotid. Fine-needle aspiration yielded slightly turbid fluid. Smears from the sediment revealed naked parasitic micronuclei, fragments of germinative layer (endocyst), and abortive brood capsules (buds from endocyst) seen as spherical structures with multiple parasitic nuclei. Some of these spherical structures were degenerated with recognizable nuclei and others were completely necrotic. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2016;44:770-773. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Characteristics of atmospheric circulation patterns associated with extreme temperatures over North America in observations and climate models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loikith, Paul C.

Motivated by a desire to understand the physical mechanisms involved in future anthropogenic changes in extreme temperature events, the key atmospheric circulation patterns associated with extreme daily temperatures over North America in the current climate are identified. Several novel metrics are used to systematically identify and describe these patterns for the entire continent. The orientation, physical characteristics, and spatial scale of these circulation patterns vary based on latitude, season, and proximity to important geographic features (i.e., mountains, coastlines). The anomaly patterns associated with extreme cold events tend to be similar to, but opposite in sign of, those associated with extreme warm events, especially within the westerlies, and tend to scale with temperature in the same locations. The influence of the Pacific North American (PNA) pattern, the Northern Annular Mode (NAM), and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on extreme temperature days and months shows that associations between extreme temperatures and the PNA and NAM are stronger than associations with ENSO. In general, the association with extremes tends to be stronger on monthly than daily time scales. Extreme temperatures are associated with the PNA and NAM in locations typically influenced by these circulation patterns; however many extremes still occur on days when the amplitude and polarity of these patterns do not favor their occurrence. In winter, synoptic-scale, transient weather disturbances are important drivers of extreme temperature days; however these smaller-scale events are often concurrent with amplified PNA or NAM patterns. Associations are weaker in summer when other physical mechanisms affecting the surface energy balance, such as anomalous soil moisture content, are associated with extreme temperatures. Analysis of historical runs from seventeen climate models from the CMIP5 database suggests that most models simulate realistic circulation patterns associated with extreme temperature days in most places. Model-simulated patterns tend to resemble observed patterns better in the winter than the summer and at 500 hPa than at the surface. There is substantial variability among the suite of models analyzed and most models simulate circulation patterns more realistically away from influential features such as large bodies of water and complex topography.

Fine-Scale Spatial Variability of Pedestrian-Level Particulate Matters in Compact Urban Commercial Districts in Hong Kong

PubMed Central

Ng, Edward

2017-01-01

Particulate matters (PM) at the pedestrian level significantly raises the health impacts in the compact urban environment of Hong Kong. A detailed investigation of the fine-scale spatial variation of pedestrian-level PM is necessary to assess the health risk to pedestrians in the outdoor environment. However, the collection of PM data is difficult in the compact urban environment of Hong Kong due to the limited amount of roadside monitoring stations and the complicated urban context. In this study, we measured the fine-scale spatial variability of the PM in three of the most representative commercial districts of Hong Kong using a backpack outdoor environmental measuring unit. Based on the measurement data, 13 types of geospatial interpolation methods were examined for the spatial mapping of PM2.5 and PM10 with a group of building geometrical covariates. Geostatistical modelling was adopted as the basis of spatial interpolation of the PM. The results show that the original cokriging with the exponential kernel function provides the best performance in the PM mapping. Using the fine-scale building geometrical features as covariates slightly improves the interpolation performance. The study results also imply that the fine-scale, localized pollution emission sources heavily influence pedestrian exposure to PM. PMID:28869527

Temperature Extremes, Health, and Human Capital

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zivin, Joshua Graff; Shrader, Jeffrey

2016-01-01

The extreme temperatures expected under climate change may be especially harmful to children. Children are more vulnerable to heat partly because of their physiological features, but, perhaps more important, because they behave and respond differently than adults do. Children are less likely to manage their own heat risk and may have fewer ways to…

Enhanced Efficiency in Fullerene-Free Polymer Solar Cell by Incorporating Fine-designed Donor and Acceptor Materials.

PubMed

Ye, Long; Sun, Kai; Jiang, Wei; Zhang, Shaoqing; Zhao, Wenchao; Yao, Huifeng; Wang, Zhaohui; Hou, Jianhui

2015-05-06

Among the diverse nonfullerene acceptors, perylene bisimides (PBIs) have been attracting much attention due to their excellent electron mobility and tunable molecular and electronic properties by simply engineering the bay and head linkages. Herein, guided by two efficient small molecular acceptors, we designed, synthesized, and characterized a new nonfullerene small molecule PPDI with fine-tailored alkyl chains. Notably, a certificated PCE of 5.40% is realized in a simple structured fullerene-free polymer solar cell comprising PPDI as the electron acceptor and a fine-tailored 2D-conjugated polymer PBDT-TS1 as the electron donor. Moreover, the device behavior, morphological feature, and origin of high efficiency in PBDT-TS1/PPDI-based fullerene-free PSC were investigated. The synchronous selection and design of donor and acceptor materials reported here offer a feasible strategy for realizing highly efficient fullerene-free organic photovoltaics.

Predation risk, elk, and aspen: tests of a behaviorally mediated trophic cascade in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

PubMed

Winnie, John A

2012-12-01

Aspen in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem are hypothesized to be recovering from decades of heavy browsing by elk due to a behaviorally mediated trophic cascade (BMTC). Several authors have suggested that wolves interact with certain terrain features, creating places of high predation risk at fine spatial scales, and that elk avoid these places, which creates refugia for plants. This hypothesized BMTC could release aspen from elk browsing pressure, leading to a patchy recovery in places of high risk. I tested whether four specific, hypothesized fine-scale risk factors are correlated with changes in current elk browsing pressure on aspen, or with aspen recruitment since wolf reintroduction, in the Daly Creek drainage in Yellowstone National Park, and near two aspen enclosures outside of the park boundary. Aspen were not responding to hypothesized fine-scale risk factors in ways consistent with the current BMTC hypothesis.

Upper Mantle Seismic Structure for NE Tibet From Multiscale Tomography Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, B.; Liu, Q.; Chen, J.

2013-12-01

In the real seismic experiments, the spatial sampling of rays inside the studied volume is basically nonuniform because of the unequispaced distribution of the seismic stations as well as the earthquake events. The conventional seismic tomography schemes adopt fixed size of cells or grid spacing while the actual resolution varies. As a result, either the phantom velocity anomalies may be aroused in regions that are poorly illuminated by the seismic rays, or the best detailed velocity model is unable to be extracted from those with fine ray coverage. We present an adaptive wavelet parameterization solution for three-dimensional traveltime seismic tomography problem and apply it to the study of the tectonics in the Northeast Tibet region. Different from the traditional parameterization schemes, we discretize the velocity model in terms of the Haar wavelets and the parameters are adjusted adaptively based on both the density and the azimuthal coverage of rays. Therefore, the fine grids are used in regions with the good data coverage, whereas the poorly resolved areas are represented by the coarse grids. Using the traveltime data recorded by the portable seismic array and the regional seismic network in the northeastern Tibet area, we investigate the P wave velocity structure of the crust and upper mantle. Our results show that the structure of the crust and upper mantle in the northeastern Tibet region manifests a strong laterally inhomogeneity, which appears not only in the adjacent areas between the different blocks, but also within each block. The velocity of the crust and upper mantle is highly different between the northeastern Tibet and the Ordos plateau. Of these two regions, the former possesses a low-velocity feature while the latter is referred to a high-velocity pattern. Between the northeastern Tibet and the Ordos plateau, there is a transition zone of about 200km wide, which is associated with an extremely complex velocity structure in crust and upper mantle.

Dynamics of the Transition Corona

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Masson, Sophie; McCauley, Patrick; Golub, Leon; Reeves, Katharine K.; DeLuca, Edward E.

2014-01-01

Magnetic reconnection between the open and closed magnetic fields in the corona is believed to play a crucial role in the corona/heliosphere coupling. At large scale, the exchange of open/closed connectivity is expected to occur in pseudo-streamer (PS) structures. However, there is neither clear observational evidence of how such coupling occurs in PSs, nor evidence for how the magnetic reconnection evolves. Using a newly developed technique, we enhance the off-limb magnetic fine structures observed with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly and identify a PS-like feature located close to the northern coronal hole. We first identify that the magnetic topology associated with the observation is a PS, null-point (NP) related topology bounded by the open field. By comparing the magnetic field configuration with the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) emission regions, we determined that most of the magnetic flux associated with plasma emission are small loops below the PS basic NP and open field bounding the PS topology. In order to interpret the evolution of the PS, we referred to a three-dimensional MHD interchange reconnection modeling the exchange of connectivity between small closed loops and the open field. The observed PS fine structures follow the dynamics of the magnetic field before and after reconnecting at the NP obtained by the interchange model. Moreover, the pattern of the EUV plasma emission is the same as the shape of the expected plasma emission location derived from the simulation. These morphological and dynamical similarities between the PS observations and the results from the simulation strongly suggest that the evolution of the PS, and in particular the opening/closing of the field, occurs via interchange/slipping reconnection at the basic NP of the PS. Besides identifying the mechanism at work in the large-scale coupling between the open and closed fields, our results highlight that interchange reconnection in PSs is a gradual physical process that differs from the impulsive reconnection of the solar-jet model.

The first case of Horn Kolb Syndrome in Turkey, diagnosed prenatally at the 23(rd) week of a pregnancy: A very rare and unusual case far from the original geography.

PubMed

Temur, Ismail; Ulker, Kahraman; Volkan, Islim; Karaca, Mehmet; Ersoz, Mustafa; Gul, Abdulaziz; Adiguzel, Esat

2012-01-01

The aim of this report was to evaluate and announce the first documented appearance of Horn Kolb syndrome in Turkey. Acheiropodia (Horn Kolb Syndrome) is the bilateral congenital amputation of the distal parts of the 4 extremities. It is an autosomal recessive developmental disorder. The characteristic features are amputation of the upper and lower extremities with aplasia of the hands and feet. The disorder affects only the extremities without other systemic manifestations. In this report, we present the first known case of Horn Kolb syndrome in Turkey, along with the diagnostic features. Severe dysmorphic skeletal anomalies should be excluded as soon as the earlier gestational weeks in every pregnancy by visualizing all 4 limbs of the fetus in routine prenatal ultrasound screening.

Fine-scale flight strategies of gulls in urban airflows indicate risk and reward in city living

PubMed Central

Shepard, Emily L. C.

2016-01-01

Birds modulate their flight paths in relation to regional and global airflows in order to reduce their travel costs. Birds should also respond to fine-scale airflows, although the incidence and value of this remains largely unknown. We resolved the three-dimensional trajectories of gulls flying along a built-up coastline, and used computational fluid dynamic models to examine how gulls reacted to airflows around buildings. Birds systematically altered their flight trajectories with wind conditions to exploit updraughts over features as small as a row of low-rise buildings. This provides the first evidence that human activities can change patterns of space-use in flying birds by altering the profitability of the airscape. At finer scales still, gulls varied their position to select a narrow range of updraught values, rather than exploiting the strongest updraughts available, and their precise positions were consistent with a strategy to increase their velocity control in gusty conditions. Ultimately, strategies such as these could help unmanned aerial vehicles negotiate complex airflows. Overall, airflows around fine-scale features have profound implications for flight control and energy use, and consideration of this could lead to a paradigm-shift in the way ecologists view the urban environment. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Moving in a moving medium: new perspectives on flight’. PMID:27528784

Hybrid Architecture Active Wavefront Sensing and Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feinberg, Lee; Dean, Bruce; Hyde, Tupper

2010-01-01

A method was developed for performing relatively high-speed wavefront sensing and control to overcome thermal instabilities in a segmented primary mirror telescope [e.g., James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at L2], by using the onboard fine guidance sensor (FGS) to minimize expense and complexity. This FGS performs centroiding on a bright star to feed the information to the pointing and control system. The proposed concept is to beam split the image of the guide star (or use a single defocused guide star image) to perform wavefront sensing using phase retrieval techniques. Using the fine guidance sensor star image for guiding and fine phasing eliminates the need for other, more complex ways of achieving very accurate sensing and control that is needed for UV-optical applications. The phase retrieval occurs nearly constantly, so passive thermal stability over fourteen days is not required. Using the FGS as the sensor, one can feed segment update information to actuators on the primary mirror that can update the primary mirror segment fine phasing with this frequency. Because the thermal time constants of the primary mirror are very slow compared to this duration, the mirror will appear extremely stable during observations (to the level of accuracy of the sensing and control). The sensing can use the same phase retrieval techniques as the JWST by employing an additional beam splitter, and having each channel go through a weak lens (one positive and one negative). The channels can use common or separate detectors. Phase retrieval can be performed onboard. The actuation scheme would include a coarse stage able to achieve initial alignment of several millimeters of range (similar to JWST and can use a JWST heritage sensing approach in the science camera) and a fine stage capable of continual updates.

Fine mapping and characterization of BPH27, a brown planthopper resistance gene from wild rice (Oryza rufipogon Griff.).

PubMed

Huang, D; Qiu, Y; Zhang, Y; Huang, F; Meng, J; Wei, S; Li, R; Chen, B

2013-01-01

The brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens Stål; BPH) is one of the most serious rice pests worldwide. Growing resistant varieties is the most effective way to manage this insect, and wild rice species are a valuable source of resistance genes for developing resistant cultivars. BPH27 derived from an accession of Guangxi wild rice, Oryza rufipogon Griff. (Accession no. 2183, hereafter named GX2183), was primarily mapped to a 17-cM region on the long arm of the chromosome four. In this study, fine mapping of BPH27 was conducted using two BC(1)F(2) populations derived from introgression lines of GX2183. Insect resistance was evaluated in the BC(1)F(2) populations with 6,010 individual offsprings, and 346 resistance extremes were obtained and employed for fine mapping of BPH27. High-resolution linkage analysis defined the BPH27 locus to an 86.3-kb region in Nipponbare. Regarding the sequence information of rice cultivars, Nipponbare and 93-11, all predicted open reading frames (ORFs) in the fine-mapping region have been annotated as 11 types of proteins, and three ORFs encode disease-related proteins. Moreover, the average BPH numbers showed significant differences in 96-120 h after release in comparisons between the preliminary near-isogenic lines (pre-NILs, lines harboring resistance genes) and BaiR54. BPH growth and development were inhibited and survival rates were lower in the pre-NIL plants compared with the recurrent parent BaiR54. The pre-NIL exhibited 50.7% reductions in population growth rates (PGR) compared to BaiR54. The new development in fine mapping of BPH27 will facilitate the efforts to clone this important resistant gene and to use it in BPH-resistance rice breeding.

Determination of Structural Parameters from EXAFS (Extended X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure): Application to Solutions and Catalysts.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-05-23

the disorder was accurately known. Inverse Transform To isolate the EAFS contribution due to a single feature in the Fourier transform, the inverse ...is associated with setting the "fold" components to 27 zero in r-space. An inverse transform (real part) of the major feature of the Fig. 4 Fourier...phase of the resulting inverse transform represents only any differences between the material being studied and the reference. This residual is

Effect of silhouetting and inversion on view invariance in the monkey inferotemporal cortex

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

We effortlessly recognize objects across changes in viewpoint, but we know relatively little about the features that underlie viewpoint invariance in the brain. Here, we set out to characterize how viewpoint invariance in monkey inferior temporal (IT) neurons is influenced by two image manipulations—silhouetting and inversion. Reducing an object into its silhouette removes internal detail, so this would reveal how much viewpoint invariance depends on the external contours. Inverting an object retains but rearranges features, so this would reveal how much viewpoint invariance depends on the arrangement and orientation of features. Our main findings are 1) view invariance is weakened by silhouetting but not by inversion; 2) view invariance was stronger in neurons that generalized across silhouetting and inversion; 3) neuronal responses to natural objects matched early with that of silhouettes and only later to that of inverted objects, indicative of coarse-to-fine processing; and 4) the impact of silhouetting and inversion depended on object structure. Taken together, our results elucidate the underlying features and dynamics of view-invariant object representations in the brain. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We easily recognize objects across changes in viewpoint, but the underlying features are unknown. Here, we show that view invariance in the monkey inferotemporal cortex is driven mainly by external object contours and is not specialized for object orientation. We also find that the responses to natural objects match with that of their silhouettes early in the response, and with inverted versions later in the response—indicative of a coarse-to-fine processing sequence in the brain. PMID:28381484

Effect of silhouetting and inversion on view invariance in the monkey inferotemporal cortex.

PubMed

Ratan Murty, N Apurva; Arun, S P

2017-07-01

We effortlessly recognize objects across changes in viewpoint, but we know relatively little about the features that underlie viewpoint invariance in the brain. Here, we set out to characterize how viewpoint invariance in monkey inferior temporal (IT) neurons is influenced by two image manipulations-silhouetting and inversion. Reducing an object into its silhouette removes internal detail, so this would reveal how much viewpoint invariance depends on the external contours. Inverting an object retains but rearranges features, so this would reveal how much viewpoint invariance depends on the arrangement and orientation of features. Our main findings are 1 ) view invariance is weakened by silhouetting but not by inversion; 2 ) view invariance was stronger in neurons that generalized across silhouetting and inversion; 3 ) neuronal responses to natural objects matched early with that of silhouettes and only later to that of inverted objects, indicative of coarse-to-fine processing; and 4 ) the impact of silhouetting and inversion depended on object structure. Taken together, our results elucidate the underlying features and dynamics of view-invariant object representations in the brain. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We easily recognize objects across changes in viewpoint, but the underlying features are unknown. Here, we show that view invariance in the monkey inferotemporal cortex is driven mainly by external object contours and is not specialized for object orientation. We also find that the responses to natural objects match with that of their silhouettes early in the response, and with inverted versions later in the response-indicative of a coarse-to-fine processing sequence in the brain. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Musical Preferences are Linked to Cognitive Styles.

PubMed

Greenberg, David M; Baron-Cohen, Simon; Stillwell, David J; Kosinski, Michal; Rentfrow, Peter J

2015-01-01

Why do we like the music we do? Research has shown that musical preferences and personality are linked, yet little is known about other influences on preferences such as cognitive styles. To address this gap, we investigated how individual differences in musical preferences are explained by the empathizing-systemizing (E-S) theory. Study 1 examined the links between empathy and musical preferences across four samples. By reporting their preferential reactions to musical stimuli, samples 1 and 2 (Ns = 2,178 and 891) indicated their preferences for music from 26 different genres, and samples 3 and 4 (Ns = 747 and 320) indicated their preferences for music from only a single genre (rock or jazz). Results across samples showed that empathy levels are linked to preferences even within genres and account for significant proportions of variance in preferences over and above personality traits for various music-preference dimensions. Study 2 (N = 353) replicated and extended these findings by investigating how musical preferences are differentiated by E-S cognitive styles (i.e., 'brain types'). Those who are type E (bias towards empathizing) preferred music on the Mellow dimension (R&B/soul, adult contemporary, soft rock genres) compared to type S (bias towards systemizing) who preferred music on the Intense dimension (punk, heavy metal, and hard rock). Analyses of fine-grained psychological and sonic attributes in the music revealed that type E individuals preferred music that featured low arousal (gentle, warm, and sensual attributes), negative valence (depressing and sad), and emotional depth (poetic, relaxing, and thoughtful), while type S preferred music that featured high arousal (strong, tense, and thrilling), and aspects of positive valence (animated) and cerebral depth (complexity). The application of these findings for clinicians, interventions, and those on the autism spectrum (largely type S or extreme type S) are discussed.

Subglottal pressure and fundamental frequency control in contact calls of juvenile Alligator mississippiensis

PubMed Central

Riede, Tobias; Tokuda, Isao T.; Farmer, C. G.

2011-01-01

SUMMARY Vocalization is rare among non-avian reptiles, with the exception of the crocodilians, the sister taxon of birds. Crocodilians have a complex vocal repertoire. Their vocal and respiratory system is not well understood but appears to consist of a combination of features that are also found in the extremely vocal avian and mammalian taxa. Anatomical studies suggest that the alligator larynx is able to abduct and adduct the vocal folds, but not to elongate or shorten them, and is therefore lacking a key regulator of frequency, yet alligators can modulate fundamental frequency remarkably well. We investigated the morphological and physiological features of sound production in alligators. Vocal fold length scales isometrically across a wide range of alligator body sizes. The relationship between fundamental frequency and subglottal pressure is significant in some individuals at some isolated points, such as call onset and position of maximum fundamental frequency. The relationship is not consistent over large segments of the call. Fundamental frequency can change faster than expected by pressure changes alone, suggesting an active motor pattern controls frequency and is intrinsic to the larynx. We utilized a two-mass vocal fold model to test whether abduction and adduction could generate this motor pattern. The fine-tuned interplay between subglottal pressure and glottal adduction can achieve frequency modulations much larger than those resulting from subglottal pressure variations alone and of similar magnitude, as observed in alligator calls. We conclude that the alligator larynx represents a sound source with only two control parameters (subglottal pressure and vocal fold adduction) in contrast to the mammalian larynx in which three parameters can be altered to modulate frequency (subglottal pressure, vocal fold adduction and length/tension). PMID:21865521

Musical Preferences are Linked to Cognitive Styles

PubMed Central

Greenberg, David M.; Baron-Cohen, Simon; Stillwell, David J.; Kosinski, Michal; Rentfrow, Peter J.

2015-01-01

Why do we like the music we do? Research has shown that musical preferences and personality are linked, yet little is known about other influences on preferences such as cognitive styles. To address this gap, we investigated how individual differences in musical preferences are explained by the empathizing-systemizing (E-S) theory. Study 1 examined the links between empathy and musical preferences across four samples. By reporting their preferential reactions to musical stimuli, samples 1 and 2 (Ns = 2,178 and 891) indicated their preferences for music from 26 different genres, and samples 3 and 4 (Ns = 747 and 320) indicated their preferences for music from only a single genre (rock or jazz). Results across samples showed that empathy levels are linked to preferences even within genres and account for significant proportions of variance in preferences over and above personality traits for various music-preference dimensions. Study 2 (N = 353) replicated and extended these findings by investigating how musical preferences are differentiated by E-S cognitive styles (i.e., ‘brain types’). Those who are type E (bias towards empathizing) preferred music on the Mellow dimension (R&B/soul, adult contemporary, soft rock genres) compared to type S (bias towards systemizing) who preferred music on the Intense dimension (punk, heavy metal, and hard rock). Analyses of fine-grained psychological and sonic attributes in the music revealed that type E individuals preferred music that featured low arousal (gentle, warm, and sensual attributes), negative valence (depressing and sad), and emotional depth (poetic, relaxing, and thoughtful), while type S preferred music that featured high arousal (strong, tense, and thrilling), and aspects of positive valence (animated) and cerebral depth (complexity). The application of these findings for clinicians, interventions, and those on the autism spectrum (largely type S or extreme type S) are discussed. PMID:26200656

Fluvial erosion and post-erosional processes on Titan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jaumann, R.; Brown, R.H.; Stephan, K.; Barnes, J.W.; Soderblom, L.A.; Sotin, Christophe; Le, Mouelic S.; Clark, R.N.; Soderblom, J.; Buratti, B.J.; Wagner, R.; McCord, T.B.; Rodriguez, S.; Baines, K.H.; Cruikshank, D.P.; Nicholson, P.D.; Griffith, C.A.; Langhans, M.; Lorenz, R.D.

2008-01-01

The surface of Titan has been revealed by Cassini observations in the infrared and radar wavelength ranges as well as locally by the Huygens lander instruments. Sand seas, recently discovered lakes, distinct landscapes and dendritic erosion patterns indicate dynamic surface processes. This study focus on erosional and depositional features that can be used to constrain the amount of liquids involved in the erosional process as well as on the compositional characteristics of depositional areas. Fluvial erosion channels on Titan as identified at the Huygens landing site and in RADAR and Visible and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) observations have been compared to analogous channel widths on Earth yielding average discharges of up to 1600 m3/s for short recurrence intervals that are sufficient to move centimeter-sized sediment and significantly higher discharges for long intervals. With respect to the associated drainage areas, this roughly translates to 1-150 cm/day runoff production rates with 10 years recurrence intervals and by assuming precipitation this implies 0.6-60 mm/h rainfall rates. Thus the observed surface erosion fits with the methane convective storm models as well as with the rates needed to transport sediment. During Cassini's T20 fly-by, the VIMS observed an extremely eroded area at 30?? W, 7?? S with resolutions of up to 500 m/pixel that extends over thousands of square kilometers. The spectral characteristics of this area change systematically, reflecting continuous compositional and/or particle size variations indicative of transported sediment settling out while flow capacities cease. To account for the estimated runoff production and widespread alluvial deposits of fine-grained material, release of area-dependent large fluid volumes are required. Only frequent storms with heavy rainfall or cryovolcanic induced melting can explain these erosional features. ?? 2008 Elsevier Inc.

Intelligent condition monitoring method for bearing faults from highly compressed measurements using sparse over-complete features

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmed, H. O. A.; Wong, M. L. D.; Nandi, A. K.

2018-01-01

Condition classification of rolling element bearings in rotating machines is important to prevent the breakdown of industrial machinery. A considerable amount of literature has been published on bearing faults classification. These studies aim to determine automatically the current status of a roller element bearing. Of these studies, methods based on compressed sensing (CS) have received some attention recently due to their ability to allow one to sample below the Nyquist sampling rate. This technology has many possible uses in machine condition monitoring and has been investigated as a possible approach for fault detection and classification in the compressed domain, i.e., without reconstructing the original signal. However, previous CS based methods have been found to be too weak for highly compressed data. The present paper explores computationally, for the first time, the effects of sparse autoencoder based over-complete sparse representations on the classification performance of highly compressed measurements of bearing vibration signals. For this study, the CS method was used to produce highly compressed measurements of the original bearing dataset. Then, an effective deep neural network (DNN) with unsupervised feature learning algorithm based on sparse autoencoder is used for learning over-complete sparse representations of these compressed datasets. Finally, the fault classification is achieved using two stages, namely, pre-training classification based on stacked autoencoder and softmax regression layer form the deep net stage (the first stage), and re-training classification based on backpropagation (BP) algorithm forms the fine-tuning stage (the second stage). The experimental results show that the proposed method is able to achieve high levels of accuracy even with extremely compressed measurements compared with the existing techniques.

On the Explosion Geometry of Red Supergiant Stars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leonard, Douglas C.; Dessart, L.; Hillier, D.; Pignata, G.

2012-01-01

From progenitor studies, type II-Plateau supernovae (SNe II-P) have been decisively and uniquely determined to arise from isolated red supergiant stars, establishing the most homogeneous --- and well understood --- progenitor class of any type of core-collapse supernova. The precise nature of the mechanism responsible for the stellar explosion, however, remains the subject of considerable debate. A fundamental clue to the nature of the explosion mechanism is explosion geometry: In short, are supernovae round? Because young supernova atmospheres are electron-scattering dominated, their net linear polarization provides a direct probe of early-time supernova geometry, with higher degrees of polarization generally indicating greater departures from spherical symmetry. Here we present spectropolarimetry data for the most well-sampled SN II-P to date, SN 2008bk, and compare (and contrast) the results with those obtained for SN 2004dj, the only other SN II-P for which spectropolarimetry data were obtained with similar fine temporal sampling before, during, and after the fall off of the photometric plateau (Leonard et al. 2006). Both objects are polarized, indicating departures from spherical symmetry, although the timing of the onset -- as well as the persistence -- of the polarization differ between the two objects. Curiously, the detailed spectropolarimetric characteristics of the two objects at the epochs of recorded maximum polarization are extremely similar, feature by feature, suggesting a common cause --- or, at least, geometry. We interpret the data in light of non-Local-Thermodynamic Equilibrium, time-dependent radiative-transfer simulations specifically crafted for SN II-P ejecta. DCL acknowledges support from NSF grant AST-1009571, under which part of this research was carried out. Based on observations collected at the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere, Chile, under observing programs 081.D-0128, 082.D-0151, and 085.D-0391 (PI: Dessart).

Accuracy assessment of a mobile terrestrial lidar survey at Padre Island National Seashore

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lim, Samsung; Thatcher, Cindy A.; Brock, John C.; Kimbrow, Dustin R.; Danielson, Jeffrey J.; Reynolds, B.J.

2013-01-01

The higher point density and mobility of terrestrial laser scanning (light detection and ranging (lidar)) is desired when extremely detailed elevation data are needed for mapping vertically orientated complex features such as levees, dunes, and cliffs, or when highly accurate data are needed for monitoring geomorphic changes. Mobile terrestrial lidar scanners have the capability for rapid data collection on a larger spatial scale compared with tripod-based terrestrial lidar, but few studies have examined the accuracy of this relatively new mapping technology. For this reason, we conducted a field test at Padre Island National Seashore of a mobile lidar scanner mounted on a sport utility vehicle and integrated with a position and orientation system. The purpose of the study was to assess the vertical and horizontal accuracy of data collected by the mobile terrestrial lidar system, which is georeferenced to the Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system and the North American Vertical Datum of 1988. To accomplish the study objectives, independent elevation data were collected by conducting a high-accuracy global positioning system survey to establish the coordinates and elevations of 12 targets spaced throughout the 12 km transect. These independent ground control data were compared to the lidar scanner-derived elevations to quantify the accuracy of the mobile lidar system. The performance of the mobile lidar system was also tested at various vehicle speeds and scan density settings (e.g. field of view and linear point spacing) to estimate the optimal parameters for desired point density. After adjustment of the lever arm parameters, the final point cloud accuracy was 0.060 m (east), 0.095 m (north), and 0.053 m (height). The very high density of the resulting point cloud was sufficient to map fine-scale topographic features, such as the complex shape of the sand dunes.

Understanding The Heating And Cooling Of Galaxies Over Cosmic Time With BLISS on SPICA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Armus, Lee; Helou, G.; Bradford, M.; Murphy, E.; Appleton, P.

2011-05-01

In order to gain a comprehensive picture of galaxy evolution, we need to accurately measure the growing population of stars and super-massive black holes in dark matter halos. The processes that regulate this evolution are invariably those that are the most difficult to simulate, namely gas heating and cooling, star formation, black hole fueling and feedback from supernovae and AGN. Measurements of the PAH features, atomic fine-structure and H2 lines in the mid-infrared with Spitzer have been used successfully to probe the dust properties, power sources and state of the ISM in normal, starburst and AGN host galaxies at 0 < z < 3. At high redshifts, these lines enter the far-infrared, which is also home to critical diagnostics of the neutral and ionized ISM, such as [OI], [OIII], [NII], and [CII]. Recent results from Herschel, CSO, IRAM and APEX suggest that there is an extremely large range in far-infrared line fluxes and physical conditions among the most luminous, high-z galaxies. However, to measure the rest-frame far-infrared cooling lines in galaxies that dominate the far-infrared background, along with the full suite of mid-infrared atomic and molecular gas and dust features in ULIRGs over a wide range in redshift, a broadband spectrometer capable of reaching the natural astrophysical background over the 30-400 micron range is required. The Background Limited Infrared Sub-millimeter Spectrometer (BLISS) on the Japanese-led SPICA mission, would deliver unmatched sensitivity to evolving, dusty galaxies over all epochs. Here we discuss the scientific rationale behind BLISS and the opportunities afforded by US participation in the SPICA mission.

Fundamental concepts and research priorities for advancing the science of urban stormwater hydrology and flood management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nytch, C. J.; Meléndez-Ackerman, E. J.; Vivoni, E. R.; Grove, J. M.; Ortiz, J.

2016-12-01

In cities, hydrologic processes are drastically altered by human interventions. Modification of land cover and the enhancement of hydraulic efficiency have been documented as root causes of augmented stormwater runoff in urban watersheds, contributing to higher magnitude discharge events that pose flood risks for human communities. Climate change is expected to accelerate the hydrologic cycle, leading to more extreme events and increased flood risk. We present a synthesis of the physical and conceptual components and processes that govern urban stormwater runoff, and highlight key areas for future research. There is limited understanding about the fine-scale spatio-temporal relationships between gray, green, brown, and blue land cover features, the underlying social-ecological mechanisms responsible for their distribution, and the resulting effects on runoff dynamics. Horizontal and vertical complexity of urban morphological features and connectivity with the network of stormwater management infrastructure leads to heterogeneous and non-linear runoff responses that confound efforts for accurately predicting flood hazards. Quantitative analysis is needed to understand how urban drainage network structure varies across stream orders, and illuminate the landscape-scale patterns that potentially serve as organizing principles for generating hydrologic processes across diverse socio-bio-climatic domains and scales. Field-based and modeling studies are also needed to quantify the individual hydrologic capacities of urban structural elements and their cumulative effects at the watershed scale, particularly in developing regions. Integrated, transdisciplinary, multi-scalar approaches to framing and investigating complex socio-eco-techno-hydrologic systems are essential for advancing the science of urban stormwater hydrology, and developing resilient, multifunctional management solutions appropriate to the challenges of urban flooding in the twenty-first century.

HYDROSCAPE: A SCAlable and ParallelizablE Rainfall Runoff Model for Hydrological Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piccolroaz, S.; Di Lazzaro, M.; Zarlenga, A.; Majone, B.; Bellin, A.; Fiori, A.

2015-12-01

In this work we present HYDROSCAPE, an innovative streamflow routing method based on the travel time approach, and modeled through a fine-scale geomorphological description of hydrological flow paths. The model is designed aimed at being easily coupled with weather forecast or climate models providing the hydrological forcing, and at the same time preserving the geomorphological dispersion of the river network, which is kept unchanged independently on the grid size of rainfall input. This makes HYDROSCAPE particularly suitable for multi-scale applications, ranging from medium size catchments up to the continental scale, and to investigate the effects of extreme rainfall events that require an accurate description of basin response timing. Key feature of the model is its computational efficiency, which allows performing a large number of simulations for sensitivity/uncertainty analyses in a Monte Carlo framework. Further, the model is highly parsimonious, involving the calibration of only three parameters: one defining the residence time of hillslope response, one for channel velocity, and a multiplicative factor accounting for uncertainties in the identification of the potential maximum soil moisture retention in the SCS-CN method. HYDROSCAPE is designed with a simple and flexible modular structure, which makes it particularly prone to massive parallelization, customization according to the specific user needs and preferences (e.g., rainfall-runoff model), and continuous development and improvement. Finally, the possibility to specify the desired computational time step and evaluate streamflow at any location in the domain, makes HYDROSCAPE an attractive tool for many hydrological applications, and a valuable alternative to more complex and highly parametrized large scale hydrological models. Together with model development and features, we present an application to the Upper Tiber River basin (Italy), providing a practical example of model performance and characteristics.

The structural bases of long-term anabiosis in non-spore-forming bacteria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzina, Natalia E.; Mulyukin, Andrey L.; Dmitriev, Vladimir V.; Nikolaev, Yury A.; Shorokhova, Anna P.; Bobkova, Yulia S.; Barinova, Ekaterina S.; Plakunov, Vladimir K.; El-Registan, Galina I.; Duda, Vitalii I.

2006-01-01

Peculiarities of the structural organization in non-spore-forming bacteria associated with long-term anabiosis were revealed both in laboratory cultures and in natural populations isolated from 1 3-Myr-old Eastern Siberian permafrost and tundra soil. Different advanced methods were used, including (a) high-resolution electron microscopy; (b) simulation of in situ conditions in the laboratory by varying the composition of growth medium and cultivation conditions; (c) low-temperature fractionation to isolate and concentrate microbial cells from natural soils; (d) comparative morphological analysis of microbial cells in model cultures and natural soils (in situ). Under laboratory conditions, the intense formation of resting cells by representatives of various taxa of eubacteria and halophilic archaea occurred in 2 9-month-old cultures grown in carbon-, nitrogen-, or phosphorus-limited media, in starved cell suspensions in the presence of sodium silicate, or on soil agar. Among resting cells, we revealed cystlike forms having a complicated structure and common features. These included a thick capsule; a thickened and multiprofile cell wall; the presence of large intramembrane particles on PF- and EF-fracture surfaces; fine-grained or lumpy cytoplasm; and a condensed nucleoid. The general morphological properties, ultrastructural organization, physiological features of cystlike cells, and their ability to germinate under the appropriate conditions suggest the existence of constitutive dormancy in non-spore-forming bacteria. It was found that the majority of microorganisms in permafrost and tundra soil are cystlike cells, very similar to those in laboratory cultures. Anabiotic (resting) cystlike cells are responsible for the survival of non-spore-formers in extreme Earth habitats and may be regarded as possible analogs of extraterrestrial forms of microbial life.

Real imaging and size values of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells with comparable contrast tuning to two environmental scanning electron microscopy modes.

PubMed

Misirli, Zulal; Oner, Ebru Toksoy; Kirdar, Betul

2007-01-01

The combined application of electron microscopy (EM) is frequently used for the microstructural investigation of biological specimens and plays two important roles in the quantification and in gaining an improved understanding of biological phenomena by making use of the highest resolution capability provided by EM. The possibility of imaging wet specimens in their "native" states in the environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) at high resolution and large depth of focus in real time is discussed in this paper. It is demonstrated here that new features can be discovered by the elimination of even the least hazardous approaches in some preparation techniques, that destroy the samples. Since the analysis conditions may influence the morphology and the extreme surface sensitivity of living biological systems, the results obtained from the same cultured cell with two different ESEM modes (Lvac mode and wet mode) were compared. This offers new opportunities compared with ESEM-wet/Lvac-mode imaging, since wet-mode imaging involves a real contrast and gives an indication of the changes in cell morphology and structure required for cell viability. In this study, wet-mode imaging was optimized using the unique ability of cell quantities for microcharacterization in situ giving very fine features of topological effects. Accordingly, the progress is reported by comparing the results of these two modes, which demonstrate interesting application details. In general, the functional comparisons have revealed that the fresh unprocessed Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells (ESEM-wet mode) were essentially unaltered with improved and minimal specimen preparation timescales, and the optimal cell viability degree was visualized and also measured quantitatively while the cell size remained unchanged with continuous images.

High northern latitude temperature extremes, 1400-1999

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tingley, M. P.; Huybers, P.; Hughen, K. A.

2009-12-01

There is often an interest in determining which interval features the most extreme value of a reconstructed climate field, such as the warmest year or decade in a temperature reconstruction. Previous approaches to this type of question have not fully accounted for the spatial and temporal covariance in the climate field when assessing the significance of extreme values. Here we present results from applying BARSAT, a new, Bayesian approach to reconstructing climate fields, to a 600 year multiproxy temperature data set that covers land areas between 45N and 85N. The end result of the analysis is an ensemble of spatially and temporally complete realizations of the temperature field, each of which is consistent with the observations and the estimated values of the parameters that define the assumed spatial and temporal covariance functions. In terms of the spatial average temperature, 1990-1999 was the warmest decade in the 1400-1999 interval in each of 2000 ensemble members, while 1995 was the warmest year in 98% of the ensemble members. A similar analysis at each node of a regular 5 degree grid gives insight into the spatial distribution of warm temperatures, and reveals that 1995 was anomalously warm in Eurasia, whereas 1998 featured extreme warmth in North America. In 70% of the ensemble members, 1601 featured the coldest spatial average, indicating that the eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru in 1600 (with a volcanic explosivity index of 6) had a major cooling impact on the high northern latitudes. Repeating this analysis at each node reveals the varying impacts of major volcanic eruptions on the distribution of extreme cooling. Finally, we use the ensemble to investigate extremes in the time evolution of centennial temperature trends, and find that in more than half the ensemble members, the greatest rate of change in the spatial mean time series was a cooling centered at 1600. The largest rate of centennial scale warming, however, occurred in the 20th Century in more than 98% of the ensemble members.

Feature-level sentiment analysis by using comparative domain corpora

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quan, Changqin; Ren, Fuji

2016-06-01

Feature-level sentiment analysis (SA) is able to provide more fine-grained SA on certain opinion targets and has a wider range of applications on E-business. This study proposes an approach based on comparative domain corpora for feature-level SA. The proposed approach makes use of word associations for domain-specific feature extraction. First, we assign a similarity score for each candidate feature to denote its similarity extent to a domain. Then we identify domain features based on their similarity scores on different comparative domain corpora. After that, dependency grammar and a general sentiment lexicon are applied to extract and expand feature-oriented opinion words. Lastly, the semantic orientation of a domain-specific feature is determined based on the feature-oriented opinion lexicons. In evaluation, we compare the proposed method with several state-of-the-art methods (including unsupervised and semi-supervised) using a standard product review test collection. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of using comparative domain corpora.

Primary Pulmonary Mucinous Cystadenocarcinoma: A Case Report

PubMed Central

Efstathiou, Andreas; Asteriou, Christos; Barbetakis, Nikolaos; Miliaras, Dimosthenis; Kleontas, Athanassios; Karvelas, Christos; Lalountas, Miltiadis

2011-01-01

Primary pulmonary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma (PMCAC) is an extremely rare cystic neoplasm. A case of a 56-year-old male with a cystic lesion of the right lower lobe is described. Preoperative fine needle aspiration cytology and bronchoscopy were inconclusive. The patient underwent a formal right lower lobectomy and mediastinal lymph node dissection. Diagnosis was established intraoperatively. The biological behavior of primary PMCAC is unknown. Therefore, careful long-term follow-up is considered necessary because of lack of experience globally. PMID:21541179

Investigating the Impacts of Particle Size and Wind Speed on Brownout

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-03-26

mixture of sand, silt, clay , and organic material, classified based on its size and texture. Sand is the largest of the particle materials, with...smallest soil component is clay , with particle sizes less than 0.002 mm. Ultra-fine in texture, clay feels sticky when wet, is extremely cohesive, and does...not allow air to move through it easily. Clay makes a soil dense and is hard as concrete when dry. Loam is a nearly even mixture of sand and silt

Turbidity in extreme western Lake Superior. [contamination of Duluth, Minnesota water intake

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sydor, M.

1975-01-01

Data were obtained from ERTS images for western Lake Superior for 1972-74. Data examination showed that for easterly winds the turbidity originating along the Wisconsin shore and the resuspension areas are transported northward then out along a N.E. path where it disperses, and often, for large storms, contaminates the Duluth water intake. Contaminants such as dredging fines anywhere along these paths would likewise find their way to the intake areas in concentrations comparable to the relative red clay concentration.

Earth observations taken during the STS-59 mission

NASA Image and Video Library

1994-04-14

STS059-219-065 (9-20 April 1994) --- The narrow end of the island is to the north by northeast. This is one of several volcanic islands extending south by southwest between the southern tip of Kamchatka and Japan. The exposure was stopped down to provide extremely fine detail in the totally snow-covered landscape, at the same time making the dark sea look completely black. Compare to STS047-90-087, taken in September, which shows a green ground cover. Hasselblad photograph.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Moroz, P.E.

A new stellarator configuration, the Double-Helix Stellarator (DHS), is introduced. This novel configuration features a double-helix center post as the only helical element of the stellarator coil system. The DHS configuration has many unique characteristics. One of them is the extreme low plasma aspect ratio, A {approx} 1--1.2. Other advantages include a high enclosed volume, appreciable rotational transform, and a possibility of extreme-high-{beta} MHD equilibria. Moreover, the DHS features improved transport characteristics caused by the absence of the magnetic field ripple on the outboard of the torus. Compactness, simplicity and modularity of the coil system add to the DHS advantagesmore » for fusion applications.« less

Note: Enhancement of the extreme ultraviolet emission from a potassium plasma by dual laser irradiation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Higashiguchi, Takeshi, E-mail: higashi@cc.utsunomiya-u.ac.jp; Yamaguchi, Mami; Otsuka, Takamitsu

2014-09-15

Emission spectra from multiply charged potassium ions ranging from K{sup 3+} to K{sup 5+} have been obtained in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) spectral region. A strong emission feature peaking around 38 nm, corresponding to a photon energy of 32.6 eV, is the dominant spectral feature at time-averaged electron temperatures in the range of 8−12 eV. The variation of this emission with laser intensity and the effects of pre-pulses on the relative conversion efficiency (CE) have been explored experimentally and indicate that an enhancement of about 30% in EUV CE is readily attainable.

Hairy black holes in scalar extended massive gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tolley, Andrew J.; Wu, De-Jun; Zhou, Shuang-Yong

2015-12-01

We construct static, spherically symmetric black hole solutions in scalar extended ghost-free massive gravity and show the existence of hairy black holes in this class of extension. While the existence seems to be a generic feature, we focus on the simplest models of this extension and find that asymptotically flat hairy black holes can exist without fine-tuning the theory parameters, unlike the bi-gravity extension, where asymptotical flatness requires fine-tuning in the parameter space. Like the bi-gravity extension, we are unable to obtain asymptotically dS regular black holes in the simplest models considered, but it is possible to obtain asymptotically AdS black holes.

SONEX: NASA SASS Ozone and Nitrogen Oxide Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Newell, Reginald E.; Zhu, Yong; Cho, John; Hu, Yuanlong

1999-01-01

This final report follows closely on our 1998 Annual Progress Report which was forwarded to NASA on November 19, 1998. Rather than reiterate the material therein we note here the continuation of the various items covered. SONEX has proN,Ided a number of opportunities to learn more about the fine-scale structure of the atmosphere. Coupled with the MOZAIC work on layers we can synthesize a new 3-D view of the fine scales that influence atmospheric chemistry. As a side issue we are also relating the features to clear air turbulence which would be, we think, a useful connection for commercial aviation.

The mechanisms of fine particle generation and electrification during Mount St. Helens volcanic eruption

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cheng, R. J.

1982-01-01

Microscopical investigation of volcanic ash collected from ground stations during Mount St. Helens eruptions reveal a distinctive bimodel size distribution with high concentrations of particle ranges at (1) 200-100 microns and (2) 20-0.1 microns. Close examination of individual particles shows that most larger ones are solidified magma particles of porous pumice with numerous gas bubbles in the interior and the smaller ones are all glassy fragments without any detectable gas bubbles. Elemental analysis demonstrates that the fine fragments all have a composition similar to that of the larger pumice particles. Laboratory experiments suggest that the formation of the fine fragments is by bursting of glassy bubbles from a partially solidified surface of a crystallizing molten magma particle. The production of gas bubbles is due to the release of absorbed gases in molten magma particles when solubility decreases during phase transition. Diffusion cloud chamber experiments strongly indicate that sub-micron volcanic fragments are highly hygroscopic and extremely active as cloud condensation nuclei. Ice crystals also are evidently formed on those fragments in a supercooled (-20 C) cloud chamber. It has been reported that charge generation from ocean volcanic eruptions is due to contact of molten lava with sea water. This seems to be insufficient to explain the observed rapid and intense lightning activities over Mount St. Helens eruptions. Therefore, a hypothesis is presented here that highly electrically charged fine solid fragments are ejected by bursting of gas bubbles from the surface of a crystallizing molten magma particles.

Characterization of Fine Airborne Particulate Collected in Tokyo and Major Atmospheric Emission Sources by Using Single Particle Measurement of SEM-EDX

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sato, K.; Iijima, A.; Furuta, N.

2008-12-01

In our long-term monitoring of size-classified Airborne Particulate Matter (APM) in Tokyo since 1995, it had been demonstrated that toxic elements such as As, Se, Cd, Sb and Pb were extremely enriched in fine APM (PM2.5). However, in that study, total sampled APM on a filter was digested with acids, and thus only averaged elemental composition in fine APM could be obtained. One of the effective methods to determine the origin of APM is single particle measurement by using SEM-EDX. By using characteristic shapes observed by SEM and marker elements contained in APM measured by EDX, detailed information for source identification can be obtained. In this study, fine APM (PM2.5) was collected at various locations such as roadside, diesel vehicle exhaust, a heavy oil combustion plant and a waste incineration plant as well as ambient atmosphere in Tokyo, and characteristics of fine particles that will be utilized for identification of emission sources are elucidated. Fine particles can be classified into 3 main characteristic shape groups; edge-shaped, cotton-like and spherical. Shape of particles collected in a heavy oil combustion plant and a waste incineration plant was mostly spherical, and these particles may be associated with thermal process. Diesel exhaust particles were predominantly cotton-like which may consist of coagulated nano-sized particles. Most of brake abrasion dusts were edge-shaped, which may be associated with mechanical abrasion of brake pads. In the elemental analysis of fine particles, high concentrations of Sb, Cu, Ti and Ba were detected in brake abrasion dusts. Since these elements are major constituents of brake pads, these can be used for marker elements of brake abrasion dusts. High concentration of C was detected in diesel exhaust particles and oil combustion particles, and thus C can be used for marker elements of their origin. Furthermore, high concentrations of C, Ca and K were detected in fly ash from a waste incineration plant, which may be associated with emission from biomass combustion.

Three decades of high-resolution coastal sea surface temperatures reveal more than warming.

PubMed

Lima, Fernando P; Wethey, David S

2012-02-28

Understanding and forecasting current and future consequences of coastal warming require a fine-scale assessment of the near-shore temperature changes. Here we show that despite the fact that 71% of the world's coastlines are significantly warming, rates of change have been highly heterogeneous both spatially and seasonally. We demonstrate that 46% of the coastlines have experienced a significant decrease in the frequency of extremely cold events, while extremely hot days are becoming more common in 38% of the area. Also, we show that the onset of the warm season is significantly advancing earlier in the year in 36% of the temperate coastal regions. More importantly, it is now possible to analyse local patterns within the global context, which is useful for a broad array of scientific fields, policy makers and general public.

Biomedical imaging with THz waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Andrew

2010-03-01

We discuss biomedical imaging using radio waves operating in the terahertz (THz) range between 300 GHz to 3 THz. Particularly, we present the concept for two THz imaging systems. One system employs single antenna, transmitter and receiver operating over multi-THz-frequency simultaneously for sensing and imaging small areas of the human body or biological samples. Another system consists of multiple antennas, a transmitter, and multiple receivers operating over multi-THz-frequency capable of sensing and imaging simultaneously the whole body or large biological samples. Using THz waves for biomedical imaging promises unique and substantial medical benefits including extremely small medical devices, extraordinarily fine spatial resolution, and excellent contrast between images of diseased and healthy tissues. THz imaging is extremely attractive for detection of cancer in the early stages, sensing and imaging of tissues near the skin, and study of disease and its growth versus time.

Mediterranean space-time extremes of wind wave sea states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbariol, Francesco; Carniel, Sandro; Sclavo, Mauro; Marcello Falcieri, Francesco; Bonaldo, Davide; Bergamasco, Andrea; Benetazzo, Alvise

2014-05-01

Traditionally, wind wave sea states during storms have been observed, modeled, and predicted mostly in the time domain, i.e. at a fixed point. In fact, the standard statistical models used in ocean waves analysis rely on the implicit assumption of long-crested waves. Nevertheless, waves in storms are mainly short-crested. Hence, spatio-temporal features of the wave field are crucial to accurately model the sea state characteristics and to provide reliable predictions, particurly of wave extremes. Indeed, the experimental evidence provided by novel instrumentations, e.g. WASS (Wave Acquisition Stereo System), showed that the maximum sea surface elevation gathered in time over an area, i.e. the space-time extreme, is larger than that one measured in time at a point, i.e. the time extreme. Recently, stochastic models used to estimate maxima of multidimensional Gaussian random fields have been applied to ocean waves statistics. These models are based either on Piterbarg's theorem or Adler and Taylor's Euler Characteristics approach. Besides a probability of exceedance of a certain threshold, they can provide the expected space-time extreme of a sea state, as long as space-time wave features (i.e. some parameters of the directional variance density spectrum) are known. These models have been recently validated against WASS observation from fixed and moving platforms. In this context, our focus was modeling and predicting extremes of wind waves during storms. Thus, to intensively gather space-time extremes data over the Mediterranean region, we used directional spectra provided by the numerical wave model SWAN (Simulating WAves Nearshore). Therefore, we set up a 6x6 km2 resolution grid entailing most of the Mediterranean Sea and we forced it with COSMO-I7 high resolution (7x7 km2) hourly wind fields, within 2007-2013 period. To obtain the space-time features, i.e. the spectral parameters, at each grid node and over the 6 simulated years, we developed a modified version of the SWAN model, the SWAN Space-Time (SWAN-ST). SWAN-ST results were post-processed to obtain the expected space-time extremes over the model domain. To this end, we applied the stochastic model of Fedele, developed starting from Adler and Taylor's approach, which we found to be more accurate and versatile with respect to Piterbarg's theorem. Results we obtained provide an alternative sight on Mediterranean extreme wave climate, which could represent the first step towards operationl forecasting of space-time wave extremes, on the one hand, and the basis for a novel statistical standard wave model, on the other. These results may benefit marine designers, seafarers and other subjects operating at sea and exposed to the frequent and severe hazard represented by extreme wave conditions.

Using input feature information to improve ultraviolet retrieval in neural networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Zhibin; Chang, Ni-Bin; Gao, Wei; Chen, Maosi; Zempila, Melina

2017-09-01

In neural networks, the training/predicting accuracy and algorithm efficiency can be improved significantly via accurate input feature extraction. In this study, some spatial features of several important factors in retrieving surface ultraviolet (UV) are extracted. An extreme learning machine (ELM) is used to retrieve the surface UV of 2014 in the continental United States, using the extracted features. The results conclude that more input weights can improve the learning capacities of neural networks.

Relating rainfall characteristics to cloud top temperatures at different scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klein, Cornelia; Belušić, Danijel; Taylor, Christopher

2017-04-01

Extreme rainfall from mesoscale convective systems (MCS) poses a threat to lives and livelihoods of the West African population through increasingly frequent devastating flooding and loss of crops. However, despite the significant impact of such extreme events, the dominant processes favouring their occurrence are still under debate. In the data-sparse West African region, rainfall radar data from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) gives invaluable information on the distribution and frequency of extreme rainfall. The TRMM 2A25 product provides a 15-year dataset of snapshots of surface rainfall from 2-4 overpasses per day. Whilst this sampling captures the overall rainfall characteristics, it is neither long nor frequent enough to diagnose changes in MCS properties, which may be linked to the trend towards rainfall intensification in the region. On the other hand, Meteosat geostationary satellites provide long-term sub-hourly records of cloud top temperatures, raising the possibility of combining these with the high-quality rainfall data from TRMM. In this study, we relate TRMM 2A25 rainfall to Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) cloud top temperatures, which are available from 2004 at 15 minutes intervals, to get a more detailed picture of the structure of intense rainfall within the life cycle of MCS. We find TRMM rainfall intensities within an MCS to be strongly coupled with MSG cloud top temperatures: the probability for extreme rainfall increases from <10% for minimum temperatures warmer than -40°C to over 70% when temperatures drop below -70°C, confirming the potential in analysing cloud-top temperatures as a proxy for extreme rain. The sheer size of MCS raises the question which scales of sub-cloud structures are more likely to be associated with extreme rain than others. In the end, this information could help to associate scale changes in cloud top temperatures with processes that affect the probability of extreme rain. We use 2D continuous wavelets to decompose cloud top temperatures into power spectra at scales between 15 and 200km. From these, cloud sub-structures are identified as circular areas of respective scale with local power maxima in their centre. These areas are then mapped onto coinciding TRMM rainfall, allowing us to assign rainfall fields to sub-cloud features of different scales. We find a higher probability for extreme rainfall for cloud features above a scale of 30km, with features 100km contributing most to the number of extreme rainfall pixels. Over the average diurnal cycle, the number of smaller cloud features between 15-60km shows an increase between 15 - 1700UTC, gradually developing into larger ones. The maximum of extreme rainfall pixels around 1900UTC coincides with a peak for scales 100km, suggesting a dominant role of these scales for intense rain for the analysed cloud type. Our results demonstrate the suitability of 2D wavelet decomposition for the analysis of sub-cloud structures and their relation to rainfall characteristics, and help us to understand long-term changes in the properties of MCS.

Chemical and physical microenvironments at the Viking landing sites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, B. C.

1979-01-01

Physical and chemical considerations permit the division of the near-surface regolith on Mars into at least six zones of distinct microenvironments. The zones are euphotic, duricrust/peds, tempofrost, permafrost, endolithic, and interfacial/transitional. Microenvironments vary significantly in temperature extremes, mean temperature, salt content, relative pressure of water vapor, UV and visible light irradiance, and exposure to ionizing radiation events (100 Mrad) and oxidative molecular species. From what is known of the chemistry of the atmosphere and regolith fines (soil), limits upon the aqueous chemistry of soil pastes may be estimated. Heat of wetting could reach 45 cal/g dry soil; initial pH is indeterminate between 1 and 10; ionic strength and salinity are predicted to be extremely high; freezing point depression is inadequate to provide quantities of liquid water except in special cases. The prospects for biotic survival are grim by terrestrial standards, but the extremes of biological resiliency are inaccessible to evaluation. Second-generation in situ experiments which will better define Martian microenvironments are clearly possible. Antarctic dry valleys are approximations to Martian conditions, but deviate significantly by at least half-a-dozen criteria.

Chemical and physical microenvironments at the Viking landing sites.

PubMed

Clark, B C

1979-12-01

Physical and chemical considerations permit the division of the near-surface regolith on Mars into at least six zones of distinct microenvironments. The zones are euphotic, duricrust/peds, tempofrost, permafrost, endolithic, and interfacial/transitional. Microenvironments vary significantly in temperature extremes, mean temperature, salt content, relative pressure of water vapor, UV and visible light irradiance, and exposure to ionizing radiation events (100 Mrad) and oxidative molecular species. From what is known of the chemistry of the atmosphere and regolith fines (soil), limits upon the aqueous chemistry of soil pastes may be estimated. Heat of wetting could reach 45 cal/g dry soil; initial pH is indeterminate between 1 and 10; ionic strength and salinity are predicted to be extremely high; freezing point depression is inadequate to provide quantities of liquid water except in special cases. The prospects for biotic survival are grim by terrestrial standards, but the extremes of biological resiliency are inaccessible to evaluation. Second-generation in situ experiments which will better define Martian microenvironments are clearly possible. Antarctic dry valleys are approximations to Martian conditions, but deviate significantly by at least half-a-dozen criteria.

Waardenburg syndrome in four Mexican patients.

PubMed

Aguilar Caso, Sandra I; Ortiz Nieva, Gabriela

2009-01-01

Waardenburg syndrome is a hereditary auditory-pigmentary syndrome. The major features include pigmentary disturbances and congenital deafness. Clinical findings are extremely variable, not only at the authors' institution but also in the literature. The authors describe four patients who presented with various clinical features and different genetic pedigree penetration.

Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses of the Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scoboria, Alan; Ford, Julian; Lin, Hsiu-ju; Frisman, Linda

2008-01-01

Two studies were conducted to provide the first empirical examination of the factor structure of a revised version of the clinically derived Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress, a structured interview designed to assess associated features of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) thought to be related to early onset, interpersonal,…

Variability of extreme rainfall over La Plata Basin and Amazon Basin in South America in model simulations of the 20th century and projections under global warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cavalcanti, I. F.

2011-12-01

The two largest river basins in South America are Amazon Basin (AMB) in the tropical region and La Plata Basin (LPB) in subtropical and extratropical regions. Extreme droughts have occurred during this decade in Amazonia region which have affected the transportation, fishing activities with impacts in the local population, and also affecting the forest. Droughts or floods over LPB have impacts on agriculture, hydroelectricity power and social life. Therefore, monthly wet and dry extremes in these two regions have a profound effect on the economy and society. Observed rainfall over Amazon Basin (AMB) and La Plata Basin (LPB) is analyzed in monthly timescale using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), from 1979 to 1999. This period is taken to compare GPCP data with HADCM3 simulations (Hadley Centre) of the 20th century and to analyze reanalyses data which have the contribution of satellite information after 1979. HADCM3 projections using SRES A2 scenario is analyzed in two periods: 2000 to 2020 and 2079 to 2099 to study the extremes frequency in a near future and in a longer timescale. Extreme, severe and moderate cases are identified in the northern and southern sectors of LPB and in the western and eastern sectors of AMB. The main objective is to analyze changes in the frequency of cases, considering the global warming and the associated mechanisms. In the observations for the 20th century, the number of extreme rainy cases is higher than the number of dry cases in both sectors of LPB and AMB. The model simulates this variability in the two sectors of LPB and in the west sector of AMB. In the near future 2000 to 2020 the frequency of wet and dry extremes does not change much in LPB and in the western sector of AMB, but the wet cases increase in the eastern AMB. However, in the period of 2079 to 2099 the projections indicate increase of wet cases in LPB and increase of dry cases in AMB. The influence of large scale features related to Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies, Walker and Hadley circulations, teleconnections, as well as the regional features related to humidity flux are discussed. The extreme droughts of 2005 and 2010 in Amazonia are show to be related to these features.

A Multihazard Regional Level Impact Assessment for South Asia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amarnath, Giriraj; Alahacoon, Niranga; Aggarwal, Pramod; Smakhtin, Vladimir

2016-04-01

To prioritize climate adaptation strategies, there is a need for quantitative and systematic regional-level assessments which are comparable across multiple climatic hazard regimes. Assessing which countries in a region are most vulnerable to climate change requires analysis of multiple climatic hazards including: droughts, floods, extreme temperature as well as rainfall and sea-level rise. These five climatic hazards, along with population densities were modelled using GIS which enabled a summary of associated human exposure and agriculture losses. A combined index based on hazard, exposure and adaptive capacity is introduced to identify areas of extreme risks. The analysis results in population climate hazard exposure defined as the relative likelihood that a person in a given location was exposed to a given climate-hazard event in a given period of time. The study presents a detailed and coherent approach to fine-scale climate hazard mapping and identification of risks areas for the regions of South Asia that, for the first time, combines the following unique features: (a) methodological consistency across different climate-related hazards, (b) assessment of total exposure on population and agricultural losses, (c) regional-level spatial coverage, and (d) development of customized tools using ArcGIS toolbox that allow assessment of changes in exposure over time and easy replacement of existing datasets with a newly released or superior datasets. The resulting maps enable comparison of the most vulnerable regions in South Asia to climate-related hazards and is among the most urgent of policy needs. Subnational areas (regions/districts/provinces) most vulnerable to climate change impacts in South Asia are documented. The approach involves overlaying climate hazard maps, sensitivity maps, and adaptive capacity maps following the vulnerability assessment framework of the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The study used data on the spatial distribution of various climate-related hazards in 1,398 subnational areas of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. An analysis of country-level population exposure showed that approximately 750 million people are affected from combined climate-hazards. Of the affected population 72% are in India, followed by 12% each from Bangladesh and Pakistan. Due in part to the economic importance of agriculture, it was found to be most vulnerable and exposed to climate extremes. An analysis of individual hazards indicates that floods and droughts) are the dominant hazards impacting agricultural areas followed by extreme rainfall, extreme temperature and sea-level rise. Based on this vulnerability assessment, all the regions of Bangladesh and the Indian States in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Orissa; Ampara, Puttalam, Trincomalee, Mannar and Batticaloa in Sri Lanka; Sind and Baluchistan in Pakistan; Central and East Nepal; and the transboundary river basins of Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra are among the most vulnerable regions in South Asia.

Extreme Facial Expressions Classification Based on Reality Parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahim, Mohd Shafry Mohd; Rad, Abdolvahab Ehsani; Rehman, Amjad; Altameem, Ayman

2014-09-01

Extreme expressions are really type of emotional expressions that are basically stimulated through the strong emotion. An example of those extreme expression is satisfied through tears. So to be able to provide these types of features; additional elements like fluid mechanism (particle system) plus some of physics techniques like (SPH) are introduced. The fusion of facile animation with SPH exhibits promising results. Accordingly, proposed fluid technique using facial animation is the real tenor for this research to get the complex expression, like laugh, smile, cry (tears emergence) or the sadness until cry strongly, as an extreme expression classification that's happens on the human face in some cases.

Large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the parotid gland: case report and literature review.

PubMed

Casas, Pablo; Bernáldez, Ricardo; Patrón, Mercedes; López-Ferrer, Pilar; García-Cabezas, Miguel A

2005-03-01

A 74-year-old male presented with a large polinodular mass in the neck. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) showed an undifferentiated large cell carcinoma. Computed tomography (CT) showed a large parotid mass with multiple satelite nodules. The remaining radiological studies were normal. Radical parotidectomy was performed. The tumor was a large cell carcinoma with neuroendocrine features and positive immunostain for neuroendocrine markers. The patient received postoperative radiotherapy and was free of tumor eight months later. Only four cases of large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) of the salivary gland have been communicated. All of them have involved the parotid gland. This tumor presents in elderly patients as a large infiltrating parotid mass. Fine needle aspiration cytology serves to recognize the carcinoma, but it fails in recognizing the neuroendocrine features of the tumor. The histopathological features of this tumor are the same as in other organs. Chromogranin and synaptophysin are useful immunohistochemical markers. A primary location of the tumor in another organ, specially the lung, should be ruled out. Surgery is the main treatment modality and can be complemented with postoperative radiotherapy. The prognosis seems to be poor. More studies are needed to better define the therapeutical alternatives and prognostic factors of these rare tumors.

Automated video-based assessment of surgical skills for training and evaluation in medical schools.

PubMed

Zia, Aneeq; Sharma, Yachna; Bettadapura, Vinay; Sarin, Eric L; Ploetz, Thomas; Clements, Mark A; Essa, Irfan

2016-09-01

Routine evaluation of basic surgical skills in medical schools requires considerable time and effort from supervising faculty. For each surgical trainee, a supervisor has to observe the trainees in person. Alternatively, supervisors may use training videos, which reduces some of the logistical overhead. All these approaches however are still incredibly time consuming and involve human bias. In this paper, we present an automated system for surgical skills assessment by analyzing video data of surgical activities. We compare different techniques for video-based surgical skill evaluation. We use techniques that capture the motion information at a coarser granularity using symbols or words, extract motion dynamics using textural patterns in a frame kernel matrix, and analyze fine-grained motion information using frequency analysis. We were successfully able to classify surgeons into different skill levels with high accuracy. Our results indicate that fine-grained analysis of motion dynamics via frequency analysis is most effective in capturing the skill relevant information in surgical videos. Our evaluations show that frequency features perform better than motion texture features, which in-turn perform better than symbol-/word-based features. Put succinctly, skill classification accuracy is positively correlated with motion granularity as demonstrated by our results on two challenging video datasets.

Classifying distinct basal cell carcinoma subtype by means of dermatoscopy and reflectance confocal microscopy.

PubMed

Longo, Caterina; Lallas, Aimilios; Kyrgidis, Athanassios; Rabinovitz, Harold; Moscarella, Elvira; Ciardo, Silvana; Zalaudek, Iris; Oliviero, Margaret; Losi, Amanda; Gonzalez, Salvador; Guitera, Pascale; Piana, Simonetta; Argenziano, Giuseppe; Pellacani, Giovanni

2014-10-01

The current guidelines for the management of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) suggest a different therapeutic approach according to histopathologic subtype. Although dermatoscopic and confocal criteria of BCC have been investigated, no specific studies were performed to evaluate the distinct reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) aspects of BCC subtypes. To define the specific dermatoscopic and confocal criteria for delineating different BCC subtypes. Dermatoscopic and confocal images of histopathologically confirmed BCCs were retrospectively evaluated for the presence of predefined criteria. Frequencies of dermatoscopic and confocal parameters are provided. Univariate and adjusted odds ratios were calculated. Discriminant analyses were performed to define the independent confocal criteria for distinct BCC subtypes. Eighty-eight BCCs were included. Dermatoscopically, superficial BCCs (n=44) were primarily typified by the presence of fine telangiectasia, multiple erosions, leaf-like structures, and revealed cords connected to the epidermis and epidermal streaming upon RCM. Nodular BCCs (n=22) featured the classic dermatoscopic features and well outlined large basaloid islands upon RCM. Infiltrative BCCs (n=22) featured structureless, shiny red areas, fine telangiectasia, and arborizing vessels on dermatoscopy and dark silhouettes upon RCM. The retrospective design. Dermatoscopy and confocal microscopy can reliably classify different BCC subtypes. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Touchscreen typing-pattern analysis for detecting fine motor skills decline in early-stage Parkinson's disease.

PubMed

Iakovakis, Dimitrios; Hadjidimitriou, Stelios; Charisis, Vasileios; Bostantzopoulou, Sevasti; Katsarou, Zoe; Hadjileontiadis, Leontios J

2018-05-16

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a degenerative movement disorder causing progressive disability that severely affects patients' quality of life. While early treatment can produce significant benefits for patients, the mildness of many early signs combined with the lack of accessible high-frequency monitoring tools may delay clinical diagnosis. To meet this need, user interaction data from consumer technologies have recently been exploited towards unsupervised screening for PD symptoms in daily life. Similarly, this work proposes a method for detecting fine motor skills decline in early PD patients via analysis of patterns emerging from finger interaction with touchscreen smartphones during natural typing. Our approach relies on low-/higher-order statistical features of keystrokes timing and pressure variables, computed from short typing sessions. Features are fed into a two-stage multi-model classification pipeline that reaches a decision on the subject's status (PD patient/control) by gradually fusing prediction probabilities obtained for individual typing sessions and keystroke variables. This method achieved an AUC = 0.92 and 0.82/0.81 sensitivity/specificity (matched groups of 18 early PD patients/15 controls) with discriminant features plausibly correlating with clinical scores of relevant PD motor symptoms. These findings suggest an improvement over similar approaches, thereby constituting a further step towards unobtrusive early PD detection from routine activities.

Playing piano can improve upper extremity function after stroke: case studies.

PubMed

Villeneuve, Myriam; Lamontagne, Anouk

2013-01-01

Music-supported therapy (MST) is an innovative approach that was shown to improve manual dexterity in acute stroke survivors. The feasibility of such intervention in chronic stroke survivors and its longer-term benefits, however, remain unknown. The objective of this pilot study was to estimate the short- and long-term effects of a 3-week piano training program on upper extremity function in persons with chronic stroke. A multiple pre-post sequential design was used, with measurements taken at baseline (week0, week3), prior to (week6) and after the intervention (week9), and at 3-week follow-up (week12). Three persons with stroke participated in the 3-week piano training program that combined structured piano lessons to home practice program. The songs, played on an electronic keyboard, involved all 5 digits of the affected hand and were displayed using a user-friendly MIDI program. After intervention, all the three participants showed improvements in their fine (nine hole peg test) and gross (box and block test) manual dexterity, as well as in the functional use of the upper extremity (Jebsen hand function test). Improvements were maintained at follow-up. These preliminary results support the feasibility of using an MST approach that combines structured lessons to home practice to improve upper extremity function in chronic stroke.

Playing Piano Can Improve Upper Extremity Function after Stroke: Case Studies

PubMed Central

Villeneuve, Myriam; Lamontagne, Anouk

2013-01-01

Music-supported therapy (MST) is an innovative approach that was shown to improve manual dexterity in acute stroke survivors. The feasibility of such intervention in chronic stroke survivors and its longer-term benefits, however, remain unknown. The objective of this pilot study was to estimate the short- and long-term effects of a 3-week piano training program on upper extremity function in persons with chronic stroke. A multiple pre-post sequential design was used, with measurements taken at baseline (week0, week3), prior to (week6) and after the intervention (week9), and at 3-week follow-up (week12). Three persons with stroke participated in the 3-week piano training program that combined structured piano lessons to home practice program. The songs, played on an electronic keyboard, involved all 5 digits of the affected hand and were displayed using a user-friendly MIDI program. After intervention, all the three participants showed improvements in their fine (nine hole peg test) and gross (box and block test) manual dexterity, as well as in the functional use of the upper extremity (Jebsen hand function test). Improvements were maintained at follow-up. These preliminary results support the feasibility of using an MST approach that combines structured lessons to home practice to improve upper extremity function in chronic stroke. PMID:23533954

Native American Biographies. Multicultural Biographies Collection.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seeley, Virginia, Ed.; And Others

This book, appropriate for secondary students, includes brief biographies of 21 Native Americans of the 20th century. The biographies focus on childhood experiences, cultural heritage, and career goals. The book is divided into four units that feature Native Americans with successful careers in the fields of literature and drama; fine arts and…

Toward daily monitoring of vegetation conditions at field scale through fusing data from multiple sensors

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Vegetation monitoring requires remote sensing data at fine spatial and temporal resolution. While imagery from coarse resolution sensors such as MODIS/VIIRS can provide daily observations, they lack spatial detail to capture surface features for crop and rangeland monitoring. The Landsat satellite s...

A new species of Phlebopus (Botales, Basidiomycota) from Mexico

Treesearch

Timothy J. Baroni; Joaquin Cifuentes; Beatriz Ortiz Santana; Silvia Cappello

2015-01-01

A new species, Phlebopus mexicanus, is described from southern tropical rainforests of Mexico based on morphological and molecular characters. Several features distinguish this species from others of Phlebopus including the medium to small basidiomata with olivaceous brown tomentose pileus that becomes finely areolate cracked with age, the dark...

SiNC: Saliency-injected neural codes for representation and efficient retrieval of medical radiographs

PubMed Central

Sajjad, Muhammad; Mehmood, Irfan; Baik, Sung Wook

2017-01-01

Medical image collections contain a wealth of information which can assist radiologists and medical experts in diagnosis and disease detection for making well-informed decisions. However, this objective can only be realized if efficient access is provided to semantically relevant cases from the ever-growing medical image repositories. In this paper, we present an efficient method for representing medical images by incorporating visual saliency and deep features obtained from a fine-tuned convolutional neural network (CNN) pre-trained on natural images. Saliency detector is employed to automatically identify regions of interest like tumors, fractures, and calcified spots in images prior to feature extraction. Neuronal activation features termed as neural codes from different CNN layers are comprehensively studied to identify most appropriate features for representing radiographs. This study revealed that neural codes from the last fully connected layer of the fine-tuned CNN are found to be the most suitable for representing medical images. The neural codes extracted from the entire image and salient part of the image are fused to obtain the saliency-injected neural codes (SiNC) descriptor which is used for indexing and retrieval. Finally, locality sensitive hashing techniques are applied on the SiNC descriptor to acquire short binary codes for allowing efficient retrieval in large scale image collections. Comprehensive experimental evaluations on the radiology images dataset reveal that the proposed framework achieves high retrieval accuracy and efficiency for scalable image retrieval applications and compares favorably with existing approaches. PMID:28771497

Spatiotemporal variation in heat-related out-of-hospital cardiac arrest during the summer in Japan.

PubMed

Onozuka, Daisuke; Hagihara, Akihito

2017-04-01

Although several studies have reported the impacts of extremely high temperature on cardiovascular diseases, few studies have investigated the spatiotemporal variation in the incidence of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) due to extremely high temperature in Japan. Daily OHCA data from 2005 to 2014 were acquired from all 47 prefectures of Japan. We used time-series Poisson regression analysis combined with a distributed lag non-linear model to assess the temporal variability in the effects of extremely high temperature on OHCA incidence in each prefecture, adjusted for time trends. Spatial variability in the relationships between extremely high temperature and OHCA between prefectures was estimated using a multivariate random-effects meta-analysis. We analyzed 166,496 OHCA cases of presumed cardiac origin occurring during the summer (June to September) that met the inclusion criteria. The minimum morbidity percentile (MMP) was the 51st percentile of temperature during the summer in Japan. The overall cumulative relative risk at the 99th percentile vs. the MMP over lags 0-10days was 1.21 (95% CI: 1.12-1.31). There was also a strong low temperature effect during the summer periods. No substantial difference in spatial or temporal variability was observed over the study period. Our study demonstrated spatiotemporal homogeneity in the risk of OHCA during periods of extremely high temperature between 2005 and 2014 in Japan. Our findings suggest that public health strategies for OHCA due to extremely high temperatures should be finely adjusted and should particularly account for the unchanging risk during the summer. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Obesity-related differences in neural correlates of force control.

PubMed

Mehta, Ranjana K; Shortz, Ashley E

2014-01-01

Greater body segment mass due to obesity has shown to impair gross and fine motor functions and reduce balance control. While recent studies suggest that obesity may be linked with altered brain functions involved in fine motor tasks, this association is not well investigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the neural correlates of motor performance in non-obese and obese adults during force control of two upper extremity muscles. Nine non-obese and eight obese young adults performed intermittent handgrip and elbow flexion exertions at 30% of their respective muscle strengths for 4 min. Functional near infrared spectroscopy was employed to measure neural activity in the prefrontal cortex bilaterally, joint steadiness was computed using force fluctuations, and ratings of perceived exertions (RPEs) were obtained to assess perceived effort. Obesity was associated with higher force fluctuations and lower prefrontal cortex activation during handgrip exertions, while RPE scores remained similar across both groups. No obesity-related differences in neural activity, force fluctuation, or RPE scores were observed during elbow flexion exertions. The study is one of the first to examine obesity-related differences on prefrontal cortex activation during force control of the upper extremity musculature. The study findings indicate that the neural correlates of motor activity in the obese may be muscle-specific. Future work is warranted to extend the investigation to monitoring multiple motor-function related cortical regions and examining obesity differences with different task parameters (e.g., longer duration, increased precision demands, larger muscles, etc.).

The Effectiveness of a Computer Game-Based Rehabilitation Platform for Children With Cerebral Palsy: Protocol for a Randomized Clinical Trial

PubMed Central

Parmar, Sanjay; Gandhi, Dorcas BC; Rempel, Gina Ruth; Restall, Gayle; Sharma, Monika; Narayan, Amitesh; Pandian, Jeyaraj; Naik, Nilashri; Savadatti, Ravi R; Kamate, Mahesh Appasaheb

2017-01-01

Background It is difficult to engage young children with cerebral palsy (CP) in repetitive, tedious therapy. As such, there is a need for innovative approaches and tools to motivate these children. We developed the low-cost, computer game-based rehabilitation platform CGR that combines fine manipulation and gross movement exercises with attention and planning game activities appropriate for young children with CP. Objective The objective of this study is to provide evidence of the therapeutic value of CGR to improve upper extremity (UE) motor function for children with CP. Methods This randomized controlled, single-blind, clinical trial with an active control arm will be conducted at 4 sites. Children diagnosed with CP between the ages of 4 and 10 years old with moderate UE impairments and fine motor control abnormalities will be recruited. Results We will test the difference between experimental and control groups using the Quality of Upper Extremity Skills Test (QUEST) and Peabody Developmental Motor Scales, Second Edition (PDMS-2) outcome measures. The parents of the children and the therapist experiences with the interventions and tools will be explored using semi-structured interviews using the qualitative description approach. Conclusions This research protocol, if effective, will provide evidence for the therapeutic value and feasibility of CGR in the pediatric rehabilitation of UE function. Trial Registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02728375; http:https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02728375 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6qDjvszvh) PMID:28526673

Quantifying spatiotemporal variability of fine particles in an urban environment using combined fixed and mobile measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sullivan, R. C.; Pryor, S. C.

2014-06-01

Spatiotemporal variability of fine particle concentrations in Indianapolis, Indiana is quantified using a combination of high temporal resolution measurements at four fixed sites and mobile measurements with instruments attached to bicycles during transects of the city. Average urban PM2.5 concentrations are an average of ˜3.9-5.1 μg m-3 above the regional background. The influence of atmospheric conditions on ambient PM2.5 concentrations is evident with the greatest temporal variability occurring at periods of one day and 5-10 days corresponding to diurnal and synoptic meteorological processes, and lower mean wind speeds are associated with episodes of high PM2.5 concentrations. An anthropogenic signal is also evident. Higher PM2.5 concentrations coincide with morning rush hour, the frequencies of PM2.5 variability co-occur with those for carbon monoxide, and higher extreme concentrations were observed mid-week compared to weekends. On shorter time scales (

NUCLEOSYNTHESIS IN HIGH-ENTROPY HOT BUBBLES OF SUPERNOVAE AND ABUNDANCE PATTERNS OF EXTREMELY METAL-POOR STARS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Izutani, Natsuko; Umeda, Hideyuki, E-mail: izutani@astron.s.u-tokyo.ac.j, E-mail: umeda@astron.s.u-tokyo.ac.j

2010-09-01

There have been suggestions that the abundance of extremely metal-poor (EMP) stars can be reproduced by hypernovae (HNe), not by normal supernovae (SNe). However, recently it was also suggested that if the innermost neutron-rich or proton-rich matter is ejected, the abundance patterns of ejected matter are changed, and normal SNe may also reproduce the observations of EMP stars. In this Letter, we calculate explosive nucleosynthesis with various Y {sub e} and entropy, and investigate whether normal SNe with this innermost matter, which we call the 'hot-bubble' component, can reproduce the abundance of EMP stars. We find that neutron-rich (Y {submore » e} = 0.45-0.49) and proton-rich (Y {sub e} = 0.51-0.55) matter can increase Zn/Fe and Co/Fe ratios as observed, but tend to overproduce other Fe-peak elements. In addition, we find that if slightly proton-rich matter with 0.50 {<=} Y {sub e} < 0.501 with s/k {sub b} {approx} 15-40 is ejected as much as {approx}0.06 M {sub sun}, even normal SNe can reproduce the abundance of EMP stars, though it requires fine-tuning of Y {sub e}. On the other hand, HNe can more easily reproduce the observations of EMP stars without fine-tuning. Our results imply that HNe are the most likely origin of the abundance pattern of EMP stars.« less

Introduction of a New Diagnostic Method for Breast Cancer Based on Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) Test Data and Combining Intelligent Systems.

PubMed

Fiuzy, Mohammad; Haddadnia, Javad; Mollania, Nasrin; Hashemian, Maryam; Hassanpour, Kazem

2012-01-01

Accurate Diagnosis of Breast Cancer is of prime importance. Fine Needle Aspiration test or "FNA", which has been used for several years in Europe, is a simple, inexpensive, noninvasive and accurate technique for detecting breast cancer. Expending the suitable features of the Fine Needle Aspiration results is the most important diagnostic problem in early stages of breast cancer. In this study, we introduced a new algorithm that can detect breast cancer based on combining artificial intelligent system and Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA). We studied the Features of Wisconsin Data Base Cancer which contained about 569 FNA test samples (212 patient samples (malignant) and 357 healthy samples (benign)). In this research, we combined Artificial Intelligence Approaches, such as Evolutionary Algorithm (EA) with Genetic Algorithm (GA), and also used Exact Classifier Systems (here by Fuzzy C-Means (FCM)) to separate malignant from benign samples. Furthermore, we examined artificial Neural Networks (NN) to identify the model and structure. This research proposed a new algorithm for an accurate diagnosis of breast cancer. According to Wisconsin Data Base Cancer (WDBC) data base, 62.75% of samples were benign, and 37.25% were malignant. After applying the proposed algorithm, we achieved high detection accuracy of about "96.579%" on 205 patients who were diagnosed as having breast cancer. It was found that the method had 93% sensitivity, 73% specialty, 65% positive predictive value, and 95% negative predictive value, respectively. If done by experts, Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) can be a reliable replacement for open biopsy in palpable breast masses. Evaluation of FNA samples during aspiration can decrease insufficient samples. FNA can be the first line of diagnosis in women with breast masses, at least in deprived regions, and may increase health standards and clinical supervision of patients. Such a smart, economical, non-invasive, rapid and accurate system can be introduced as a useful diagnostic system for comprehensive treatment of breast cancer. Another advantage of this method is the possibility of diagnosing breast abnormalities. If done by experts, FNA can be a reliable replacement for open biopsy in palpable breast masses. Evaluation of FNA samples during aspiration can decrease insufficient samples.

Mutual information criterion for feature selection with application to classification of breast microcalcifications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diamant, Idit; Shalhon, Moran; Goldberger, Jacob; Greenspan, Hayit

2016-03-01

Classification of clustered breast microcalcifications into benign and malignant categories is an extremely challenging task for computerized algorithms and expert radiologists alike. In this paper we present a novel method for feature selection based on mutual information (MI) criterion for automatic classification of microcalcifications. We explored the MI based feature selection for various texture features. The proposed method was evaluated on a standardized digital database for screening mammography (DDSM). Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and the advantage of using the MI-based feature selection to obtain the most relevant features for the task and thus to provide for improved performance as compared to using all features.

A compliant mechanism for inspecting extremely confined spaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mascareñas, David; Moreu, Fernando; Cantu, Precious; Shields, Daniel; Wadden, Jack; El Hadedy, Mohamed; Farrar, Charles

2017-11-01

We present a novel, compliant mechanism that provides the capability to navigate extremely confined spaces for the purpose of infrastructure inspection. Extremely confined spaces are commonly encountered during infrastructure inspection. Examples of such spaces can include pipes, conduits, and ventilation ducts. Often these infrastructure features go uninspected simply because there is no viable way to access their interior. In addition, it is not uncommon for extremely confined spaces to possess a maze-like architecture that must be selectively navigated in order to properly perform an inspection. Efforts by the imaging sensor community have resulted in the development of imaging sensors on the millimeter length scale. Due to their compact size, they are able to inspect many extremely confined spaces of interest, however, the means to deliver these sensors to the proper location to obtain the desired images are lacking. To address this problem, we draw inspiration from the field of endoscopic surgery. Specifically we consider the work that has already been done to create long flexible needles that are capable of being steered through the human body. These devices are typically referred to as ‘steerable needles.’ Steerable needle technology is not directly applicable to the problem of navigating maze-like arrangements of extremely confined spaces, but it does provide guidance on how this problem should be approached. Specifically, the super-elastic nitinol tubing material that allows steerable needles to operate is also appropriate for the problem of navigating maze-like arrangements of extremely confined spaces. Furthermore, the portion of the mechanism that enters the extremely confined space is completely mechanical in nature. The mechanical nature of the device is an advantage when the extremely confined space features environmental hazards such as radiation that could degrade an electromechanically operated mechanism. Here, we present a compliant mechanism developed to navigate maze-like arrangements of extremely confined spaces. The mechanism is shown to be able to selectively navigate past three 90° bends. The ability to selectively navigate extremely confined spaces opens up new possibilities to use emerging miniature imaging technology for infrastructure inspection.

Extremely selective attention: eye-tracking studies of the dynamic allocation of attention to stimulus features in categorization.

PubMed

Blair, Mark R; Watson, Marcus R; Walshe, R Calen; Maj, Fillip

2009-09-01

Humans have an extremely flexible ability to categorize regularities in their environment, in part because of attentional systems that allow them to focus on important perceptual information. In formal theories of categorization, attention is typically modeled with weights that selectively bias the processing of stimulus features. These theories make differing predictions about the degree of flexibility with which attention can be deployed in response to stimulus properties. Results from 2 eye-tracking studies show that humans can rapidly learn to differently allocate attention to members of different categories. These results provide the first unequivocal demonstration of stimulus-responsive attention in a categorization task. Furthermore, the authors found clear temporal patterns in the shifting of attention within trials that follow from the informativeness of particular stimulus features. These data provide new insights into the attention processes involved in categorization. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Extreme grain size reduction in dolomite: microstructures and mechanisms.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kennedy, L.; White, J. C.

2007-12-01

Pure dolomite sample were deformed at room temperature and under a variety of confining pressures (0 - 100MPa) to examine the processes of grain size reduction. The dolomite is composed of > 97 vol. % dolomite with accessory quartz, calcite, tremolite, and muscovite and has been metamorphosed to amphibolite facies and subsequently annealed. At the hand sample scale, the rock is isotropic, except for minor, randomly oriented tremolite porphyroblasts, and weakly aligned muscovite. At the thin section scale, coarser grains have lobate grain boundaries, exhibit minor to no undulose extinction and few deformation twins, although well- developed subgrains are present. Growth twins are common, as is the presence of well developed {1011} cleavage. Mean grain size 476 microns, and porosity is essentially zero (Austin and Kennedy, 2006). Samples contain diagonal to subvertical faults. Fractures are lined with an exceptionally fine-grained, powdered dolomite. Even experiments done at no confining pressure and stopped before sliding on the fracture surfaces occurred had significant powdered gouge developed along the surfaces. In this regard, fracturing of low porosity, pure dolomite, with metamorphic textures (e.g. lobate, interlocking grain boundaries) results in the development of fine-grained gouge. As expected the dolomite exhibited an increase in strength with increasing confining pressure, with a maximum differential stress of ~400MPa at 100 MPa confining pressure. At each chosen confining pressure, two experiments were performed and stopped at different stages along the load-displacement curve: just before yield stress and at peak stress. Microstructures at each stage were observed in order to determine the possible mechanisms for extreme grain size reduction. SEM work shows that in samples with little to no apparent displacement along microfractures, extreme grain size reduction still exists, suggesting that frictional sliding and subsequent cataclasis may not be the mechanism responsible for grain size reduction. Within individual dolomite clasts, apparent Mode I cracks are also lined with powedered gouge. Alternative mechanisms for grain size reduction are explored. Austin et al. 2005, Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 243, 51-66.3.

Relationship between fine particulate matter, weather condition and daily non-accidental mortality in Shanghai, China: A Bayesian approach.

PubMed

Fang, Xin; Fang, Bo; Wang, Chunfang; Xia, Tian; Bottai, Matteo; Fang, Fang; Cao, Yang

2017-01-01

There are concerns that the reported association of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) with mortality might be a mixture of PM2.5 and weather conditions. We evaluated the effects of extreme weather conditions and weather types on mortality as well as their interactions with PM2.5 concentrations in a time series study. Daily non-accidental deaths, individual demographic information, daily average PM2.5 concentrations and meteorological data between 2012 and 2014 were obtained from Shanghai, China. Days with extreme weather conditions were identified. Six synoptic weather types (SWTs) were generated. The generalized additive model was set up to link the mortality with PM2.5 and weather conditions. Parameter estimation was based on Bayesian methods using both the Jeffreys' prior and an informative normal prior in a sensitivity analysis. We estimate the percent increase in non-accidental mortality per 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 concentration and constructed corresponding 95% credible interval (CrI). In total, 336,379 non-accidental deaths occurred during the study period. Average daily deaths were 307. The results indicated that per 10 μg/m3 increase in daily average PM2.5 concentration alone corresponded to 0.26-0.35% increase in daily non-accidental mortality in Shanghai. Statistically significant positive associations between PM2.5 and mortality were found for favorable SWTs when considering the interaction between PM2.5 and SWTs. The greatest effect was found in hot dry SWT (percent increase = 1.28, 95% CrI: 0.72, 1.83), followed by warm humid SWT (percent increase = 0.64, 95% CrI: 0.15, 1.13). The effect of PM2.5 on non-accidental mortality differed under specific extreme weather conditions and SWTs. Environmental policies and actions should take into account the interrelationship between the two hazardous exposures.

Relationship between fine particulate matter, weather condition and daily non-accidental mortality in Shanghai, China: A Bayesian approach

PubMed Central

Wang, Chunfang; Xia, Tian; Bottai, Matteo; Fang, Fang; Cao, Yang

2017-01-01

There are concerns that the reported association of ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) with mortality might be a mixture of PM2.5 and weather conditions. We evaluated the effects of extreme weather conditions and weather types on mortality as well as their interactions with PM2.5 concentrations in a time series study. Daily non-accidental deaths, individual demographic information, daily average PM2.5 concentrations and meteorological data between 2012 and 2014 were obtained from Shanghai, China. Days with extreme weather conditions were identified. Six synoptic weather types (SWTs) were generated. The generalized additive model was set up to link the mortality with PM2.5 and weather conditions. Parameter estimation was based on Bayesian methods using both the Jeffreys’ prior and an informative normal prior in a sensitivity analysis. We estimate the percent increase in non-accidental mortality per 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 concentration and constructed corresponding 95% credible interval (CrI). In total, 336,379 non-accidental deaths occurred during the study period. Average daily deaths were 307. The results indicated that per 10 μg/m3 increase in daily average PM2.5 concentration alone corresponded to 0.26–0.35% increase in daily non-accidental mortality in Shanghai. Statistically significant positive associations between PM2.5 and mortality were found for favorable SWTs when considering the interaction between PM2.5 and SWTs. The greatest effect was found in hot dry SWT (percent increase = 1.28, 95% CrI: 0.72, 1.83), followed by warm humid SWT (percent increase = 0.64, 95% CrI: 0.15, 1.13). The effect of PM2.5 on non-accidental mortality differed under specific extreme weather conditions and SWTs. Environmental policies and actions should take into account the interrelationship between the two hazardous exposures. PMID:29121092

Extreme climatic events constrain space use and survival of a ground-nesting bird.

PubMed

Tanner, Evan P; Elmore, R Dwayne; Fuhlendorf, Samuel D; Davis, Craig A; Dahlgren, David K; Orange, Jeremy P

2017-05-01

Two fundamental issues in ecology are understanding what influences the distribution and abundance of organisms through space and time. While it is well established that broad-scale patterns of abiotic and biotic conditions affect organisms' distributions and population fluctuations, discrete events may be important drivers of space use, survival, and persistence. These discrete extreme climatic events can constrain populations and space use at fine scales beyond that which is typically measured in ecological studies. Recently, a growing body of literature has identified thermal stress as a potential mechanism in determining space use and survival. We sought to determine how ambient temperature at fine temporal scales affected survival and space use for a ground-nesting quail species (Colinus virginianus; northern bobwhite). We modeled space use across an ambient temperature gradient (ranging from -20 to 38 °C) through a maxent algorithm. We also used Andersen-Gill proportional hazard models to assess the influence of ambient temperature-related variables on survival through time. Estimated available useable space ranged from 18.6% to 57.1% of the landscape depending on ambient temperature. The lowest and highest ambient temperature categories (<-15 °C and >35 °C, respectively) were associated with the least amount of estimated useable space (18.6% and 24.6%, respectively). Range overlap analysis indicated dissimilarity in areas where Colinus virginianus were restricted during times of thermal extremes (range overlap = 0.38). This suggests that habitat under a given condition is not necessarily a habitat under alternative conditions. Further, we found survival was most influenced by weekly minimum ambient temperatures. Our results demonstrate that ecological constraints can occur along a thermal gradient and that understanding the effects of these discrete events and how they change over time may be more important to conservation of organisms than are average and broad-scale conditions as typically measured in ecological studies. © 2016 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Compilation of 1982 Annual Reports of the Navy ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) Communications System Ecological Monitoring Program.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-05-01

systems are generally considered difficult to study, several features of ectomycor- rhizae facilitate such investigations. Ectomycorrhizal fungi...communications antenna area and 2) distribution features of the induced field in the forest floor. The overall objective of these studies is to quantify key...Sultanova, K. Kayumov, and 0. Khasahov. 1981. Some features of microbiological processes under alfalfa depending on hoeing depth and fertilizer

Lime treatment of an Italian pyroclastic soil: a multi-scale analysis for the correlation of mechanical and chemo-mineralogical effects.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guidobaldi, Giulia; Cambi, Costanza; Cecconi, Manuela; Comodi, Paola; Zucchini, Azzurra

2017-04-01

In recent years, the ever-growing need to minimize costs and environmental impact in the construction of major civil infrastructure has led to the development of a large amount of methods based on the reuse of local materials. In particular, one of the most diffused methods is represented by lime treatment, widely applied in earthwork field to achieve mechanical improvement of otherwise unsuitable fine grained soils. However, unlike fine grained soils, many other types of world-wide common natural soils still represent a geotechnical obstacle. Among these, pyroclastic soils are a typology widely spread in Central and Southern Italy that finds marginal applications in earthworks practice due to the intrinsic complexities in terms of nature, heterogeneity, microstructural features and unsaturated hydro-mechanical behaviour. The need to overcome the described limitations motivates the focus of this work on the geotechnical characterization of pyroclastic deposits along with the increasing attention on the volume-scale and micro-scale features characterization and correlation. The main goal of the present study is to highlight the effects of lime treatment on a zeolite rich pyroclastic soil, focusing on the relationship between macro and micro modifications induced by lime addition. Within this research, an extensive experimental work was developed on a zeolitic pyroclastic soil coming from Orvieto cliff (Vulsini volcanic district, Central Italy). The overall investigation was organized in three phases: the first phase was devoted to the thorough chemo-physical and mineralogical characterization of the raw soil; subsequently, conventional direct shear tests were performed on reconstituted specimens of both raw and lime treated soil (2% and 5% Ca(OH)2) at increasing curing times and stress levels; finally, a wide chemo-mineralogical investigation was carried out on the lime treated samples to gain a more complete knowledge of the reactions responsible for the mechanical improvements. Direct shear tests on treated soil samples revealed a brittle and dilatant behaviour; both features are more evident with increasing lime content, curing time and stress levels. Mechanical and chemo-mineralogical observations were coupled to obtain a better comprehension of the treated soil system evolution. During the chemo-mineralogical investigation phase, the ongoing system modifications at particle level were extremely stressed mixing soil and lime in the same weight proportions. This also led to a clear identification of the reaction products and kinetics through µX-Ray Fluorescence, X-Ray Diffraction, Thermogravimetry, Fourier Transformed Infra-Red and 29Si Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy. The performed multi-scale analysis of the treated pyroclastic soil revealed the high reactivity of the system to lime addition, and the occurrence of pozzolanic reactions since the very beginning. The availability of secondary phases, in both crystalline and gel-like state, and their structural features are the main responsible for the observed mechanical behavior of the treated soil, showing the effectiveness of the treatment and the key role of zeolites in the chemo-physical evolution of the system. The obtained results, validated and supported by a deep comprehension of the micro-scale processes induced by lime treatment might open new perspective for future fruitful applications of pyroclastic problematic soils.

Diffractive element in extreme-UV lithography condenser

DOEpatents

Sweatt, William C.; Ray-Chaudhuri, Avijit

2001-01-01

Condensers having a mirror with a diffraction grating in projection lithography using extreme ultra-violet significantly enhances critical dimension control. The diffraction grating has the effect of smoothing the illumination at the camera's entrance pupil with minimum light loss. Modeling suggests that critical dimension control for 100 nm features can be improved from 3 nm to less than about 0.5 nm.

Diffractive element in extreme-UV lithography condenser

DOEpatents

Sweatt, William C.; Ray-Chaudhurl, Avijit K.

2000-01-01

Condensers having a mirror with a diffraction grating in projection lithography using extreme ultra-violet significantly enhances critical dimension control. The diffraction grating has the effect of smoothing the illumination at the camera's entrance pupil with minimum light loss. Modeling suggests that critical dimension control for 100 nm features can be improved from 3 nm to less than about 0.5 nm.

In-the-wild facial expression recognition in extreme poses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Fei; Zhang, Qian; Zheng, Chi; Qiu, Guoping

2018-04-01

In the computer research area, facial expression recognition is a hot research problem. Recent years, the research has moved from the lab environment to in-the-wild circumstances. It is challenging, especially under extreme poses. But current expression detection systems are trying to avoid the pose effects and gain the general applicable ability. In this work, we solve the problem in the opposite approach. We consider the head poses and detect the expressions within special head poses. Our work includes two parts: detect the head pose and group it into one pre-defined head pose class; do facial expression recognize within each pose class. Our experiments show that the recognition results with pose class grouping are much better than that of direct recognition without considering poses. We combine the hand-crafted features, SIFT, LBP and geometric feature, with deep learning feature as the representation of the expressions. The handcrafted features are added into the deep learning framework along with the high level deep learning features. As a comparison, we implement SVM and random forest to as the prediction models. To train and test our methodology, we labeled the face dataset with 6 basic expressions.

V-ELMpiRNAPred: Identification of human piRNAs by the voting-based extreme learning machine (V-ELM) with a new hybrid feature.

PubMed

Pian, Cong; Chen, Yuan-Yuan; Zhang, Jin; Chen, Zhi; Zhang, Guang-Le; Li, Qiang; Yang, Tao; Zhang, Liang-Yun

2017-02-01

Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) were recently discovered as endogenous small noncoding RNAs. Some recent research suggests that piRNAs may play an important role in cancer. So the precise identification of human piRNAs is a significant work. In this paper, we introduce a series of new features with 80 dimension called short sequence motifs (SSM). A hybrid feature vector with 1444 dimension can be formed by combining 1364 features of [Formula: see text]-mer strings and 80 features of SSM features. We optimize the 1444 dimension features using the feature score criterion (FSC) and list them in descending order according to the scores. The first 462 are selected as the input feature vector in the classifier. Moreover, eight of 80 SSM features appear in the top 20. This indicates that these eight SSM features play an important part in the identification of piRNAs. Since five of the above eight SSM features are associated with nucleotide A and G ('A*G', 'A**G', 'A***G', 'A****G', 'A*****G'). So, we guess there may exist some biological significance. We also use a neural network algorithm called voting-based extreme learning machine (V-ELM) to identify real piRNAs. The Specificity (Sp) and Sensitivity (Sn) of our method are 95.48% and 94.61%, respectively in human species. This result shows that our method is more effective compared with those of the piRPred, piRNApredictor, Asym-Pibomd, Piano and McRUMs. The web service of V-ELMpiRNAPred is available for free at http://mm20132014.wicp.net:38601/velmprepiRNA/Main.jsp .

[Features of allele polymorphism of genes involved in homocysteine and folate metabolism in patients with atherosclerosis of the lower extremity arteries].

PubMed

Klenkova, N A; Kapustin, S I; Saltykova, N B; Shmeleva, V M; Blinov, M N

2009-01-01

Under study were features of allele polymorphism of genes of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR C677T and A1298C), methionine synthase (MS A 2756G), methionine synthase reductase (MTRR A66G) and methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (MTHFD G1958A) in patients with atherosclerosis of the lower extremity arteries (ALEA). Patients with hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) had statistically significant increase of allele MTHFR 677T and MTRR 66GG as compared both with the control group and with the group of patients without HHcy. It suggests that polymorphism of genes involved in homocystein and folate metabolism might affect the risk of HHcy in patients with ALEA.

Effects of Hyperfine Particles on Reflectance Spectra from 0.3 to 25 μm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mustard, John F.; Hays, John E.

1997-01-01

Fine grained particles <50 μm in size dominate particle size distributions of many planetary surfaces. Despite the predominance of fine particles in planetary regoliths, there have been few investigations of the systematic effects of the finest particles on reflectance spectra, and on the ability of quantitative models to extract compositional and/or textural information from remote observations. The effects of fine particles that are approximately the same size as the wavelength of light on reflectance spectra were investigated using narrow particle size separates of the minerals olivine and quartz across the wavelength range 0.3 to 25 μm. The minerals were ground with a mortar and pestle and sieved into five particle size separates of 5-μm intervals from <5 μm to 20-25 μm. The exact particle size distributions were determined with a particle size analyzer and are shown to be Gaussian about a mean within the range of each sieve separate. The reflectance spectra, obtained using a combination of a bidirectional reflectance spectrometer and an FTIR, exhibited a number of systematic changes as the particle size decreased to become approximately the same size and smaller than the wavelength. In the region of volume scattering, the spectra exhibited a sharp drop in reflectance with the finest particle size separates. Christiansen features became saturated when the imaginary part of the index of refraction was non-negligible, while the restrahlen bands showed continuous decrease in spectral contrast and some change in the shape of the bands with decreasing particle size, though the principal features diagnostic of composition were relatively unaffected. The transparency features showed several important changes with decreasing particle size: the spectral contrast increased then decreased, the position of the maximum reflectance of the transparency features shifted systematically to shorter wavelengths, and the symmetry of the features changed. Mie theory predicts that the extinction and scattering efficiencies should decline rapidly when particle size and wavelength are approximately equal. Using these relationships, a critical diameter where this change is predicted to occur was calculated as a function of wavelength and shown to be effective for explaining qualitatively the observed changes. Each of the mineral particle size series were then modeled quantitatively using Mie calculations to determine single-scattering albedo and a Hapke model to calculate reflectance. The models include the complex indices of refraction for olivine and quartz and the exact particle size distributions. The olivine particle size series was well modeled by these calculations, and correctly reproduced the systematic changes in the volume scattering region, the Christiansen feature, restrahlen bands, and transparency features. The quartz particle size series were less well modeled, with the greatest discrepancies in the restrahlen bands and the overall spectral contrast.

Hashimoto thyroiditis: Part 2, sonographic analysis of benign and malignant nodules in patients with diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis.

PubMed

Anderson, Lauren; Middleton, William D; Teefey, Sharlene A; Reading, Carl C; Langer, Jill E; Desser, Terry; Szabunio, Margaret M; Mandel, Susan J; Hildebolt, Charles F; Cronan, John J

2010-07-01

The purpose of this article is to compare sonographic features of benign and malignant nodules in patients with diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis. As part of an ongoing multiinstitutional study, patients who underwent ultrasound and fine-needle aspiration of one or more thyroid nodules were analyzed for a variety of predetermined sonographic features. Patients with a sonographic appearance consistent with diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis and with coexisting nodules that could be confirmed to be benign or malignant by fine-needle aspiration or surgical pathologic analysis were included in the study. Among nodules within diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis, 84% (69/82) were benign (35 nodular Hashimoto thyroiditis, 32 nodular hyperplasia, and two follicular adenoma), and 16% (13/82) were malignant (12 papillary carcinoma and one lymphoma). Malignant nodules were more likely to be solid and hypoechoic (62% vs 19%). All types of calcifications were more prevalent among malignant nodules, including microcalcifications (39% vs 0%), nonspecific tiny bright reflectors (39% vs 6%), macrocalcifications (15% vs 3%), and eggshell (15% vs 2%). Benign nodules were more likely to be hyperechoic (46% vs 9%), to have a halo (39% vs 15%), and to lack calcifications (88% vs 23%). Benign nodules more often had ill-defined margins (36% vs 8%). Sonographic features of benign and malignant nodules within diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis are generally similar to the features typical of benign and malignant nodules in the general population. If calcifications of any type are added to the list of malignant sonographic features, the decision to biopsy a nodule in patients with diffuse Hashimoto thyroiditis can be based on recommendations that have been published previously.

Extreme Variability in a Broad Absorption Line Quasar

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stern, Daniel; Jun, Hyunsung D.; Graham, Matthew J.

CRTS J084133.15+200525.8 is an optically bright quasar at z = 2.345 that has shown extreme spectral variability over the past decade. Photometrically, the source had a visual magnitude of V ∼ 17.3 between 2002 and 2008. Then, over the following five years, the source slowly brightened by approximately one magnitude, to V ∼ 16.2. Only ∼1 in 10,000 quasars show such extreme variability, as quantified by the extreme parameters derived for this quasar assuming a damped random walk model. A combination of archival and newly acquired spectra reveal the source to be an iron low-ionization broad absorption line quasar withmore » extreme changes in its absorption spectrum. Some absorption features completely disappear over the 9 years of optical spectra, while other features remain essentially unchanged. We report the first definitive redshift for this source, based on the detection of broad H α in a Keck/MOSFIRE spectrum. Absorption systems separated by several 1000 km s{sup −1} in velocity show coordinated weakening in the depths of their troughs as the continuum flux increases. We interpret the broad absorption line variability to be due to changes in photoionization, rather than due to motion of material along our line of sight. This source highlights one sort of rare transition object that astronomy will now be finding through dedicated time-domain surveys.« less

Combat Identification of Synthetic Aperture Radar Images Using Contextual Features and Bayesian Belief Networks

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-01

algorithms. Alternatively, features invariant to aspect and de - pression angles must be found. This research uses simple segmentation algorithms and...FN5 Out of Library SA-8 TZM SA-8 Reload vehicle N 6 N OOL1 BMP-1 Tank w/small turret Y 0 Y OOL2 BTR-70 8-wheeled transport N 8 N OOL3 SA-13 Turret SAMs...the NDEC threshold is established by selecting a user de - fined quantile of class’ entropy distriubtion. During testing, any test exemplar with an

Rare pancreatic neoplasms: the utility of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration-a large single center study.

PubMed

Imaoka, Hiroshi; Yamao, Kenji; Bhatia, Vikram; Shimizu, Yasuhiro; Yatabe, Yasushi; Koshikawa, Takashi; Kinoshita, Yoshikazu

2009-01-01

Tumors other than ductal adenocarcinomas constitute 10%-15% of all pancreatic tumors. We describe the performance and pitfalls of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) for diagnosis of these rare pancreatic tumors and their characteristic cytopathological features. The records of 455 pancreatic fine-needle aspiration procedures done between March 1997 and August 2006 at Aichi Cancer Center, Nagoya, Japan, were reviewed. Besides cytology, aspirated material was routinely submitted in formalin for cell-block analysis. The reference standard for final diagnosis was surgical pathology from resected specimens. Twenty-eight rare (nonductal adenocarcinomas) pancreatic tumors were identified. Overall, EUS-FNA with the results of cytology, cell-block processing, and immunohistochemistry could correctly diagnose the type of neoplasm in 19 (67.9%) cases. EUS-FNA could distinguish benign from malignant rare tumors with a sensitivity of 69.2%, a specificity of 100%, positive predictive value of 100%, negative predictive value of 79.0%, and accuracy of 85.7%. None of three malignant pancreatic endocrine neoplasms could be diagnosed as malignant. An adequate core tissue sample could be obtained in 21 cases (75.0%) and provide a histopathological diagnosis in 19 (67.9%) cases. EUS-FNA could change the presumptive diagnosis in 11 (39.3%) cases. Specific immunochemical studies were useful adjuncts to the diagnosis. No major or minor complication was noted in any patient. Pancreatic neoplasms other than ductal adenocarcinomas have diverse imaging and histopathological features. EUS-FNA is accurate and safe for their identification.

Fine line structures of ceramic films formed by patterning of metalorganic precursors using photolithography and ion beams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hung, L. S.; Zheng, L. R.

1992-05-01

Fine line structures of ceramic thin films were fabricated by patterning of metalorganic precursors using photolithography and ion beams. A trilevel structure was developed with an outer resist layer to transfer patterns, a silver delineated layer as an implantation mask, and a planar resist layer protecting the precursor film from chemical attacking and sputtering. Ion irradiation through the Ag stencil rendered metal carboxylates insoluble in 2-ethylhexanoic acid, permitting patterning of the precursor film with patterning features on micron scales. The potential of this technique was demonstrated in patterning of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O(8+x) and Pb(Zr(0.53)Ti(0.47) thin films.

Inflight Performance of the SDO Fine Pointing Science Mode

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mason, Paul; O'Donnell, James; Starin, Scott R.; Halverson, Julie; Vess, Melissa F.

2017-01-01

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) was successfully launched and deployed from its Atlas V launch vehicle on February 11, 2010. Three months later, on May 14, 2010, the fully commissioned heliophysics laboratory was handed over to Space Systems Mission Operations to begin its science mission. SDO is an Explorer-class mission now operating in a geosynchronous orbit, sending data 24 hours per day to a dedicated ground station in White Sands, New Mexico. It carries a suite of instruments designed to observe the Sun in multiple wavelengths at unprecedented resolution. The Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) includes four telescopes with 4096x4096 focal plane CCDs that can image the full solar disk in seven extreme ultraviolet and three ultraviolet-visible wavelengths. The Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE) collects time-correlated data on the activity of the Sun's corona. The Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) enables study of pressure waves moving through the body of the Sun.

Extremely efficient crystallization of HKUST-1 and Keggin-loaded related phases through the epoxide route.

PubMed

Oestreicher, Víctor; Jobbágy, Matías

2017-03-25

Highly crystalline HKUST-1 and COK-16-like phases were obtained based on a mild in situ alkalinization one-pot epoxide driven method. A slurry composed of finely ground trimesic acid, H 3 BTC, dispersed in a CuCl 2 aqueous solution quantitatively developed well crystallized HKUST-1 after the addition of propylene oxide. The use of solid H 3 BTC ensures a low concentration of free linker, favoring crystalline growth over the precipitation of amorphous or metastable impurities. An extreme space-time yield of 2.1 × 10 5 kg m -3 day -1 was reached, with no linker excess and minimum use of solvent. The method was equally efficient in the achievement of pure NENU/COK-16 phases, containing [PW 12 O 40 ] 3- , [PMo 12 O 40 ] 3- and [SiMo 12 O 40 ] 4- polyoxometalates.

Possible indicators of long-range transport for aerosol emitted from various source regions in Northeast Asia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, S.; Kim, C.

2013-12-01

Air pollutant is affected by both long-range transboundary processes and local air pollution emission. Therefore it is important to identify the origin of air pollutant, for example, by classifying air pollutants into long-range transport (LRT) dominant process and local emission dominant (LED) cases. This study proposed several chemical and physical indicators of LRT process of aerosol concentrations observed at Korean peninsula. In order to identify the source regions and to estimate the contributions of both LRT and LED, we performed Lagrangian particle dispersion model(FLEXPART) and selected high pollution days over the three source regions in China inland and one Korea peninsula defined in this study; LRT-I to III and LED case. Next, we investigated the chemical and physical characteristics of LRT process of aerosol, and contrasted to those in the LED case over the Northeast Asia. We examined the difference of both modeled features simulated by CMAQ and as well measured aerosol optical properties of satellite-based sensor MODIS and AERONET data. Modeling study showed that the most effective indicator is the sulfur conversion ratios such as SO42-/(SO2+ SO42-) and SO42-/ SO2 for high sulfate condition. The ratio of N-containing species such as NOx (or NOy) to CO were the next best alternative indicators. In the meteorological fields, the results showed that pressure pattern and streamline flow are similar on a case by case basis. For observational physical features, we obtained the spatial distributions of the mean AOD, fine mode fraction (FMF), angstrom exponent (AE) by taking the average of MODIS aerosol products for the each analysis period. The highest AOD was found over the industrialized coastal region regardless of cases. AERONET data showed that aerosol size distribution showed significantly higher concentration of fine-mode particle in LED cases in comparison with that of LRT groups, suggesting that the amplitude fine modes of LRT relative to LED could be a possible LRT indicator. We expressed the ratio of both fine- and coarse-mode amplitudes according to the various source regions for LRT and LED process at receptor of Korean peninsula. Other characteristics of simulated and observational features of physical properties were also discussed here.

Investigation of environmental change pattern in Japan. Investigation of variations in the prominent oceanic current, Kuroshio

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maruyasu, T.; Shoji, D. (Principal Investigator)

1976-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. Rias shorelines are interpreted from the fine depiction of their complex features in the image of band 7. Sand beaches are discriminated from their linear nature, and the similarity of sand beaches among the all band is very good.

Japanese Robotic SFA during Expedition 22

NASA Image and Video Library

2010-03-10

ISS022-E-089764 (10 March 2010) --- Looking through the Kibo airlock, the Japanese robotic Small Fine Arm (SFA), also known as ?Ko-bot?, is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 22 crew member in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station during its installation on the external Japanese Experiment Module - Exposed Facility.

Layered Manufacturing: Challenges and Opportunities

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-04-01

quality of the surface finish, eliminating residual stress , controlling local composition and microstructure, achieving fine feature size and...applications. Some methods have achieved commercial status, having graduated from the university level, others are in various stages of research. However...Road * Sintering * Co-firing * Shrinkage * Gas dimensions + Powder or + Resin * Residual stress precursors * Layer wire feeding infiltration * Distortion

Kevlar: Transitioning Helix from Research to Practice

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

protective transformations are applied to application binaries before they are deployed. Salient features of Kevlar include applying high- entropy ...variety of classes. Kevlar uses novel, fine-grained, high- entropy diversification transformations to prevent an attacker from successfully exploiting...Kevlar include applying high- entropy randomization techniques, automated program repairs, leveraging highly-optimized virtual machine technology, and in

Kevlar: Transitioning Helix for Research to Practice

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-03-01

entropy randomization techniques, automated program repairs leveraging highly-optimized virtual machine technology, and developing a novel framework...attacker from exploiting residual vulnerabilities in a wide variety of classes. Helix/Kevlar uses novel, fine-grained, high- entropy diversification...the Air Force, and IARPA). Salient features of Helix/Kevlar include developing high- entropy randomization techniques, automated program repairs

Thinking in English: A New Perspective on Teaching ESL

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muciaccia, John B.

2011-01-01

"Thinking in English" represents Dr. Muciaccia's unique method of teaching English to non-native English speakers. Unlike any other English as a Second Language (ESL) book, Muciaccia's book features the "cultural immersion" approach that he has developed and practiced to a fine degree. In addition to his methodology, Muciaccia includes words of…

Essential Questions to Raise during a Building Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneider, Tod

2005-01-01

School planning isn't easy. Compromises can inadvertently undermine critical health and safety features. Errors can go undetected until too late, becoming apparent only after the cement is dry. As a school design consultant, the author is often pointing out dysfunctional elements in otherwise fine school buildings. He would much rather catch them…

Correlates across the Structural, Functional, and Molecular Phenotypes of Fragile X Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beckel-Mitchener, Andrea; Greenough, William T.

2004-01-01

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is characterized by a pattern of morphological, functional, and molecular characteristics with, in at least some cases, apparent relationships among phenotypic features at different levels. Gross morphology differences in the sizes of some human brain regions are accompanied by fine structural alterations in the shapes and…

FIELD EVALUATION OF A HIGH-VOLUME DICHOTOMOUS SAMPLER

EPA Science Inventory

This study presents the field evaluation of a high-volume dichotomous sampler that collects coarse (PM10-2.5) and fine (PM2.5) particulate matter. The key feature of this device is the utilization of a round-nozzle virtual impactor with a 50% cutpoint at 2.5 5m to split PM10 into...

Secondary tumors involving the thyroid gland: A multi-institutional analysis of 28 cases diagnosed on fine-needle aspiration.

PubMed

HooKim, Kim; Gaitor, Jennifer; Lin, Oscar; Reid, Michelle D

2015-11-01

Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is routinely used to evaluate primary thyroid lesions (PTLs), however, its role in diagnosing secondary thyroid neoplasms (STNs) has not been extensively studied. The goal was to examine the clinical and cytopathologic features of STNs diagnosed on FNA. The clinico-pathologic features of 28 STNs were analyzed. All PTLs, lymphomas, and locally invasive tumors were excluded. There were 28 STNs (0.18% incidence) out of 15,800 thyroid FNAs (12 males, 16 females, 32 - 85 years), all occurring metachronously (3 weeks-20 years, average 78.3 months) comprising 24 (85.7%) metastatic carcinomas (14 [50%] renal; 4 [14.3%] head and neck squamous cell carcinomas, 3 [10.7%] breast, and 1 [3.6%] colorectal, uterine serous carcinoma, and lung adenosquamous carcinoma, respectively), 3 sarcomas (10.7%) and 1 melanoma (3.6%). STNs are rare and diverse tumors which may occur decades after primary malignancy. Renal carcinomas are the most common. Prior history of malignancy, high index of suspicion, and attention to key distinguishing cytologic clues are critical for accurate diagnosis. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Nature of exciton transitions in hexagonal boron nitride

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, J.; Cao, X. K.; Lin, J. Y.

2016-03-21

In contrast to other III-nitride semiconductors GaN and AlN, the intrinsic (or free) exciton transition in hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) consists of rather complex fine spectral features (resolved into six sharp emission peaks) and the origin of which is still unclear. Here, the free exciton transition (FX) in h-BN bulk crystals synthesized by a solution method at atmospheric pressure has been probed by deep UV time-resolved photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. Based on the separations between the energy peak positions of the FX emission lines, the identical PL decay kinetics among different FX emission lines, and the known phonon modes in h-BN,more » we suggest that there is only one principal emission line corresponding to the direct intrinsic FX transition in h-BN, whereas all other fine features are a result of phonon-assisted transitions. The identified phonon modes are all associated with the center of the Brillouin zone. Our results offer a simple picture for the understanding of the fundamental exciton transitions in h-BN.« less

Wavelet Scale Analysis of Mesoscale Convective Systems for Detecting Deep Convection From Infrared Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klein, Cornelia; Belušić, Danijel; Taylor, Christopher M.

2018-03-01

Mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) are frequently associated with rainfall extremes and are expected to further intensify under global warming. However, despite the significant impact of such extreme events, the dominant processes favoring their occurrence are still under debate. Meteosat geostationary satellites provide unique long-term subhourly records of cloud top temperatures, allowing to track changes in MCS structures that could be linked to rainfall intensification. Focusing on West Africa, we show that Meteosat cloud top temperatures are a useful proxy for rainfall intensities, as derived from snapshots from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission 2A25 product: MCSs larger than 15,000 km2 at a temperature threshold of -40°C are found to produce 91% of all extreme rainfall occurrences in the study region, with 80% of the storms producing extreme rain when their minimum temperature drops below -80°C. Furthermore, we present a new method based on 2-D continuous wavelet transform to explore the relationship between cloud top temperature and rainfall intensity for subcloud features at different length scales. The method shows great potential for separating convective and stratiform cloud parts when combining information on temperature and scale, improving the common approach of using a temperature threshold only. We find that below -80°C, every fifth pixel is associated with deep convection. This frequency is doubled when looking at subcloud features smaller than 35 km. Scale analysis of subcloud features can thus help to better exploit cloud top temperature data sets, which provide much more spatiotemporal detail of MCS characteristics than available rainfall data sets alone.

Synoptic Conditions and Moisture Sources Actuating Extreme Precipitation in Nepal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bohlinger, Patrik; Sorteberg, Asgeir; Sodemann, Harald

2017-12-01

Despite the vast literature on heavy-precipitation events in South Asia, synoptic conditions and moisture sources related to extreme precipitation in Nepal have not been addressed systematically. We investigate two types of synoptic conditions—low-pressure systems and midlevel troughs—and moisture sources related to extreme precipitation events. To account for the high spatial variability in rainfall, we cluster station-based daily precipitation measurements resulting in three well-separated geographic regions: west, central, and east Nepal. For each region, composite analysis of extreme events shows that atmospheric circulation is directed against the Himalayas during an extreme event. The direction of the flow is regulated by midtropospheric troughs and low-pressure systems traveling toward the respective region. Extreme precipitation events feature anomalous high abundance of total column moisture. Quantitative Lagrangian moisture source diagnostic reveals that the largest direct contribution stems from land (approximately 75%), where, in particular, over the Indo-Gangetic Plain moisture uptake was increased. Precipitation events occurring in this region before the extreme event likely provided additional moisture.

Distribution and composition of gold in porphyry gold systems: example from the Biely Vrch deposit, Slovakia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koděra, Peter; Kozák, Jaroslav; Brčeková, Jana; Chovan, Martin; Lexa, Jaroslav; Jánošík, Michal; Biroň, Adrián; Uhlík, Peter; Bakos, František

2018-03-01

The Biely Vrch deposit in the Western Carpathians is assigned to the shallow, sulfide-poor porphyry gold deposit type and has an exceptionally low Cu/Au ratio. According to 3-D geochemical models, there is a limited spatial correlation between Au and Cu due to the primary introduction of gold by a salt melt and Cu by low-density vapor. Despite a rough spatial correlation of gold grades with quartz stockwork intensity, gold is hosted mostly by altered rock, exclusively in native form. Three main gold mineral assemblages were recognized here. In the deepest parts of the system, the K- and Ca-Na silicate gold assemblage is associated with minerals of high-temperature alteration (plagioclase, K-feldspar, actinolite), with gold grades and fineness depending on depth and potassium content of the host rock: K-silicate alteration hosts the lowest fineness gold ( 914), whereas Ca-Na silicate alteration has the highest ( 983). The intermediate argillic gold assemblage is the most widespread, with gold hosted mainly by chlorite, illite, smectite, and interstratified illite-chlorite-smectite minerals. The gold fineness is mostly variable (875-990) and inherited from the former gold mineral assemblages. The latest advanced argillic gold assemblage has its gold mostly in kaolinite. The extremely high fineness ( 994) results from gold remobilization by late-stage aqueous magmatic-hydrothermal fluids. Uncommon bonanza-grade appears where the earlier gold mineral assemblages were further enriched by this remobilized gold. Primary precipitation of gold occurred during ascent and cooling of salt melts at 450 to 309 °C, mostly during retrograde quartz solubility.

Modeling of Fine-Particle Formation in Turbulent Flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raman, Venkat; Fox, Rodney O.

2016-01-01

The generation of nanostructured particles in high-temperature flames is important both for the control of emissions from combustion devices and for the synthesis of high-value chemicals for a variety of applications. The physiochemical processes that lead to the production of fine particles in turbulent flames are highly sensitive to the flow physics and, in particular, the history of thermochemical compositions and turbulent features they encounter. Consequently, it is possible to change the characteristic size, structure, composition, and yield of the fine particles by altering the flow configuration. This review describes the complex multiscale interactions among turbulent fluid flow, gas-phase chemical reactions, and solid-phase particle evolution. The focus is on modeling the generation of soot particles, an unwanted pollutant from automobile and aircraft engines, as well as metal oxides, a class of high-value chemicals sought for specialized applications, including emissions control. Issues arising due to the numerical methods used to approximate the particle number density function, the modeling of turbulence-chemistry interactions, and model validation are also discussed.

Simple hybrid method for fine microaneurysm detection from non-dilated diabetic retinopathy retinal images.

PubMed

Sopharak, Akara; Uyyanonvara, Bunyarit; Barman, Sarah

2013-01-01

Microaneurysms detection is an important task in computer aided diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy. Microaneurysms are the first clinical sign of diabetic retinopathy, a major cause of vision loss in diabetic patients. Early microaneurysm detection can help reduce the incidence of blindness. Automatic detection of microaneurysms is still an open problem due to their tiny sizes, low contrast and also similarity with blood vessels. It is particularly very difficult to detect fine microaneurysms, especially from non-dilated pupils and that is the goal of this paper. Simple yet effective methods are used. They are coarse segmentation using mathematic morphology and fine segmentation using naive Bayes classifier. A total of 18 microaneurysms features are proposed in this paper and they are extracted for naive Bayes classifier. The detected microaneurysms are validated by comparing at pixel level with ophthalmologists' hand-drawn ground-truth. The sensitivity, specificity, precision and accuracy are 85.68, 99.99, 83.34 and 99.99%, respectively. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modern Cosmology and Anthropic Fine-Tuning: Three approaches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collins, Robin

The anthropic fine-tuning of the cosmos refers to the claim that the laws of nature, the constants of physics, and the initial conditions of the universe must be set to an enormous degree of precision for embodied conscious agents to exist. Three major responses have been offered to this fine-tuning: the multiverse explanation; theism; and the claim that it is just a brute fact that requires no further explanation. In this chapter, I will consider each explanation in turn, and provide some novel arguments for the superiority of a theistic or related explanation. In the last section, I will show how whether or not one adopts a theistic or related explanation can significantly influence what features of the universe one considers in need of further scientific explanation, and the type of scientific explanation that one should find satisfactory. In particular, I will argue that in some cases atheism, not theism, serves as a science stopper in discouraging a search for deeper scientific explanations of phenomena.

Controlled crack growth specimen for brittle systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calomino, Anthony M.; Brewer, David N.

1990-01-01

A pure Mode 1 fracture specimen and test procedure has been developed which provides extended, stable, through-thickness crack growth in ceramics and other brittle, nonmetallic materials. Fixed displacement loading, applied at the crack mouth, promotes stable crack extension by reducing the stored elastic strain energy. Extremely fine control of applied displacements is achieved by utilizing the Poisson's expansion of a compressively loaded cylindrical pin. Stable cracks were successfully grown in soda-lime glass and monolithic Al2O3 for lengths in excess of 20 mm without uncontrollable catastrophic failure.

Controlled crack growth specimen for brittle systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Calomino, Anthony M.; Brewer, David N.

1992-01-01

A pure Mode 1 fracture specimen and test procedure has been developed which provides extended, stable, through-thickness crack growth in ceramics and other brittle, nonmetallic materials. Fixed displacement loading, applied at the crack mouth, promotes stable crack extension by reducing the stored elastic strain energy. Extremely fine control of applied displacements is achieved by utilizing the Poisson's expansion of a compressively loaded cylindrical pin. Stable cracks were successfully grown in soda-lime glass and monolithic Al2O3 for lengths in excess of 2O mm without uncontrollable catastrophic failure.

The development of a super-fine-grained nuclear emulsion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asada, Takashi; Naka, Tatsuhiro; Kuwabara, Ken-ichi; Yoshimoto, Masahiro

2017-06-01

A nuclear emulsion with micronized crystals is required for the tracking detection of submicron ionizing particles, which are one of the targets of dark-matter detection and other techniques. We found that a new production method, called the PVA—gelatin mixing method (PGMM), could effectively control crystal size from 20 nm to 50 nm. We called the two types of emulsion produced with the new method the nano imaging tracker and the ultra-nano imaging tracker. Their composition and spatial resolution were measured, and the results indicate that these emulsions detect extremely short tracks.

Recent Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) experience with on-orbit calibration of attitude sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, W.; Hashmall, J.; Harman, R.

1992-01-01

The results of on-orbit calibration for several satellites by the flight Dynamics Facility (FDF) at GSFC are reviewed. The examples discussed include attitude calibrations for sensors, including fixed-head star trackers, fine sun sensors, three-axis magnetometers, and inertial reference units taken from recent experience with the Compton Gamma Ray observatory, the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, and the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer calibration. The methods used and the results of calibration are discussed, as are the improvements attained from in-flight calibration.

Elevation as a barrier: genetic structure for an Atlantic rain forest tree (Bathysa australis) in the Serra do Mar mountain range, SE Brazil.

PubMed

Reis, Talita Soares; Ciampi-Guillardi, Maísa; Bajay, Miklos Maximiliano; de Souza, Anete Pereira; Dos Santos, Flavio Antonio Maës

2015-05-01

Distance and discrete geographic barriers play a role in isolating populations, as seed and pollen dispersal become limited. Nearby populations without any geographic barrier between them may also suffer from ecological isolation driven by habitat heterogeneity, which may promote divergence by local adaptation and drift. Likewise, elevation gradients may influence the genetic structure and diversity of populations, particularly those marginally distributed. Bathysa australis (Rubiaceae) is a widespread tree along the elevation gradient of the Serra do Mar, SE Brazil. This self-compatible species is pollinated by bees and wasps and has autochoric seeds, suggesting restricted gene dispersal. We investigated the distribution of genetic diversity in six B. australis populations at two extreme sites along an elevation gradient: a lowland site (80-216 m) and an upland site (1010-1100 m.a.s.l.). Nine microsatellite loci were used to test for genetic structure and to verify differences in genetic diversity between sites. We found a marked genetic structure on a scale as small as 6 km (F ST = 0.21), and two distinct clusters were identified, each corresponding to a site. Although B. australis is continuously distributed along the elevation gradient, we have not observed a gene flow between the extreme populations. This might be related to B. australis biological features and creates a potential scenario for adaptation to the different conditions imposed by the elevation gradient. We failed to find an isolation-by-distance pattern; although on the fine scale, all populations showed spatial autocorrelation until ∼10-20 m. Elevation difference was a relevant factor though, but we need further sampling effort to check its correlation with genetic distance. The lowland populations had a higher allelic richness and showed higher rare allele counts than the upland ones. The upland site may be more selective, eliminating rare alleles, as we did not find any evidence for bottleneck.

Dislocation creep accommodated Grain Boundary Sliding: A high strain rate/low temperature deformation mechanism in calcite ultramylonites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rogowitz, Anna; Grasemann, Bernhard

2014-05-01

Grain boundary sliding (GBS) is an important grain size sensitive deformation mechanism that is often associated with extreme strain localization and superplasticity. Another mechanism has to operate simultaneously to GBS in order to prevent overlaps and voids between sliding grains. One of the most common accommodating mechanisms is diffusional creep but, recently, dislocation creep has been reported to operate simultaneous to GBS. Due to the formation of a flanking structure in nearly pure calcite marble on Syros (Cyclades, Greece) at lower greenschist facies conditions, an extremely fine grained ultramylonite developed. The microstructure of the layer is characterized by (1) calcite grains with an average grain size of 3.6 µm (developed by low temperature/high strain rate grain boundary migration recrystallization, BLG), (2) grain boundary triple junctions with nearly 120° angles and (3) small cavities preferentially located at triple junctions and at grain boundaries in extension. These features suggest that the dominant deformation mechanism was GBS. In order to get more information on the accommodation mechanism detailed microstructural and textural analyses have been performed on a FEI Quanta 3D FEG instrument equipped with an EDAX Digiview IV EBSD camera. The misorientation distribution curves for correlated and uncorrelated grains follow almost perfect the calculated theoretical curve for a random distribution, which is typical for polycrystalline material deformed by GBS. However, the crystallographic preferred orientation indicates that dislocation creep might have operated simultaneously. We also report Zener-Stroh cracks resulting from dislocation pile up, indicating that dislocation movement was active. We, therefore, conclude that the dominant deformation mechanism was dislocation creep accommodated grain boundary sliding. This is consistent with the observed grain size range that plots at the field boundary between grain size insensitive and grain size sensitive creep, in a deformation mechanism map for calcite.

Investigating the origins of rhythmic major-element zoning in HP/LT garnets from worldwide subduction mélanges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viete, D. R.; Hacker, B. R.; Seward, G.; Allen, M. B.

2016-12-01

Rhythmic major-element zoning has been documented in garnets from high pressure/low temperature (HP/LT) lenses within a number of worldwide subduction mélanges (e.g. California, Chinese Tianshan, Cuba, Greek Cyclades, Guatemala, Japan, Venezuela). The origin of these features has implications for the nature of subduction-zone processes. Conditions of rhythmic zoning acquirement in HP/LT garnets of California and Venezuela were investigated by use of Raman and FTIR microspectroscopy, and thermodynamic modelling of phase equilibria. Quartz-in-garnet Raman barometry reveals varying P—on the order of 100­-300 MPa, over radial distances of 10s of µm—in association with the high-Mn (and low-Mg) bands that define the fine-scale rhythmic zoning. Results from FTIR microspectroscopy demonstrate association between the high-Mn bands and locally depressed (structural) OH and elevated (molecular) H2O concentrations. The microspectroscopy results suggest changes in P and fluid activity attended development of the cryptic rhythmic zoning. Perple_X modelling of phase equilibria shows that, for specific rock chemistry and subduction P-T conditions, garnet modal abundance is extremely sensitive to changes in P (e.g. 10-20 vol.% growth/dissolution for ΔP = 200 MPa). Rhythmic major-element zoning may reflect P- and/or fluid-driven cycles of garnet stability-instability and/or varying reaction progress/kinetics during subduction. Steep compositional gradients that define the rhythmic major-element zoning limit time scales at subduction T, requiring that such individual stability-instability and/or accelerated reaction cycles were extremely brief. Seismic cycles or porosity waves represent ephemeral phenomena capable of accounting for development of rhythmic major-element zoning in HP/LT garnet, during subduction, as a result of fluctuations in both P and fluids. Metamorphic rocks may well carry detailed records of the catastrophism that punctuates longer-term tectonometamorphic processes.

400 Years of summer hydroclimate from stable isotopes in Iberian trees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andreu-Hayles, Laia; Ummenhofer, Caroline C.; Barriendos, Mariano; Schleser, Gerhard H.; Helle, Gerhard; Leuenberger, Markus; Gutiérrez, Emilia; Cook, Edward R.

2017-07-01

Tree rings are natural archives that annually record distinct types of past climate variability depending on the parameters measured. Here, we use ring-width and stable isotopes in cellulose of trees from the northwestern Iberian Peninsula (IP) to understand regional summer hydroclimate over the last 400 years and the associated atmospheric patterns. Correlations between tree rings and climate data demonstrate that isotope signatures in the targeted Iberian pine forests are very sensitive to water availability during the summer period, and are mainly controlled by stomatal conductance. Non-linear methods based on extreme events analysis allow for capturing distinct seasonal climatic variability recorded by tree-ring parameters and asymmetric signals of the associated atmospheric features. Moreover, years with extreme high (low) values in the tree-ring records were characterised by coherent large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns with reduced (enhanced) moisture transport onto the northwestern IP. These analyses of extremes revealed that high/low proxy values do not necessarily correspond to mirror images in the atmospheric anomaly patterns, suggesting different drivers of these patterns and the corresponding signature recorded in the proxies. Regional hydroclimate features across the broader IP and western Europe during extreme wet/dry summers detected by the northwestern IP trees compare favourably to independent multicentury sea level pressure and drought reconstructions for Europe. Historical records also validate our findings that attribute non-linear moisture signals recorded by extreme tree-ring values to distinct large-scale atmospheric patterns and allow for 400-year reconstructions of the frequency of occurrence of extreme conditions in late spring and summer hydroclimate.

21st Century Changes in Precipitation Extremes Over the United States: Can Climate Analogues Help or Hinder?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, X.; Schlosser, C. A.

2013-12-01

Global warming is expected to alter the frequency and/or magnitude of extreme precipitation events. Such changes could have substantial ecological, economic, and sociological consequences. However, climate models in general do not correctly reproduce the frequency and intensity distribution of precipitation, especially at the regional scale. In this study, gridded data from a dense network of surface precipitation gauges and a global atmospheric analysis at a coarser scale are combined to develop a diagnostic framework for the large-scale meteorological conditions (i.e. flow features, moisture supply) that dominate during extreme precipitation. Such diagnostic framework is first evaluated with the late 20th century simulations from an ensemble of climate models participating in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), and is found to produce more consistent (and less uncertain) total and interannaul number of extreme days with the observations than the model-based precipitation over the south-central United States and the Western United States examined in this study. The framework is then applied to the CMIP5 multi-model projections for two radiative forcing scenarios (Representative Concentration Pathways 4.5 and 8.5) to assess the potential future changes in the probability of precipitation extremes over the same study regions. We further analyze the accompanying circulation features and their changes that may be responsible for shifts in extreme precipitation in response to changed climate. The results from this study may guide hazardous weather watches and help society develop adaptive strategies for preventing catastrophic losses.

400 years of summer hydroclimate from stable isotopes in Iberian trees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andreu-Hayles, Laia; Ummenhofer, Caroline C.; Barriendos, Mariano; Schleser, Gerhard H.; Helle, Gerhard; Leuenberger, Markus; Gutierrez, Emilia; Cook, Edward R.

2017-04-01

Tree rings are natural archives that annually record distinct types of past climate variability depending on the parameters measured. Here, we use ring-width and stable isotopes in cellulose of trees from the northwestern Iberian Peninsula (IP) to understand regional summer hydroclimate over the last 400 years and the associated atmospheric patterns. Correlations between tree rings and climate data demonstrate that isotope signatures in the targeted Iberian pine forests are very sensitive to water availability during the summer period, and are mainly controlled by stomatal conductance. Non-linear methods based on extreme events analysis allow for capturing distinct seasonal climatic variability recorded by tree-ring parameters and asymmetric signals of the associated atmospheric features. Moreover, years with extreme high (low) values in the tree-ring records were characterised by coherent large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns with reduced (enhanced) moisture transport onto the northwestern IP. These analyses of extremes revealed that high/low proxy values do not necessarily correspond to mirror images in the atmospheric anomaly patterns, suggesting different drivers of these patterns and the corresponding signature recorded in the proxies. Regional hydroclimate features across the broader IP and western Europe during extreme wet/dry summers detected by the northwestern IP trees compare favourably to an independent multicentury sea level pressure and drought reconstruction for Europe. Historical records also validate our findings that attribute non-linear moisture signals recorded by extreme tree-ring values to distinct large-scale atmospheric patterns and allow for 400-yr reconstructions of the frequency of occurrence of extreme conditions in summer hydroclimate. We will discuss how the results for Lillo compare with other records.

Beta Adrenergic Signaling: A Targetable Regulator of Angiosarcoma and Hemangiosarcoma

PubMed Central

Dickerson, Erin B.; Bryan, Brad A.

2015-01-01

Human angiosarcomas and canine hemangiosarcomas are highly aggressive cancers thought to arise from cells of vascular origin. The pathological features, morphological organization, and clinical behavior of canine hemangiosarcomas are virtually indistinct from those of human angiosarcomas. Overall survival with current standard-of-care approaches remains dismal for both humans and dogs, and each is likely to succumb to their disease within a short duration. While angiosarcomas in humans are extremely rare, limiting their study and treatment options, canine hemangiosarcomas occur frequently. Therefore, studies of these sarcomas in dogs can be used to advance treatment approaches for both patient groups. Emerging data suggest that angiosarcomas and hemangiosarcomas utilize beta adrenergic signaling to drive their progression by regulating the tumor cell niche and fine-tuning cellular responses within the tumor microenvironment. These discoveries indicate that inhibition of beta adrenergic signaling could serve as an Achilles heel for these tumors and emphasize the need to design therapeutic strategies that target tumor cell and stromal cell constituents. In this review, we summarize recent discoveries and present new hypotheses regarding the roles of beta adrenergic signaling in angiosarcomas and hemangiosarcomas. Because the use of beta adrenergic receptor antagonists is well established in human and veterinary medicine, beta blockade could provide an immediate adjunct therapy for treatment along with a tangible opportunity to improve upon the outcomes of both humans and dogs with these diseases. PMID:29061946

Application of wavelet analysis for monitoring the hydrologic effects of dam operation: Glen canyon dam and the Colorado River at lees ferry, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

White, M.A.; Schmidt, J.C.; Topping, D.J.

2005-01-01

Wavelet analysis is a powerful tool with which to analyse the hydrologic effects of dam construction and operation on river systems. Using continuous records of instantaneous discharge from the Lees Ferry gauging station and records of daily mean discharge from upstream tributaries, we conducted wavelet analyses of the hydrologic structure of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. The wavelet power spectrum (WPS) of daily mean discharge provided a highly compressed and integrative picture of the post-dam elimination of pronounced annual and sub-annual flow features. The WPS of the continuous record showed the influence of diurnal and weekly power generation cycles, shifts in discharge management, and the 1996 experimental flood in the post-dam period. Normalization of the WPS by local wavelet spectra revealed the fine structure of modulation in discharge scale and amplitude and provides an extremely efficient tool with which to assess the relationships among hydrologic cycles and ecological and geomorphic systems. We extended our analysis to sections of the Snake River and showed how wavelet analysis can be used as a data mining technique. The wavelet approach is an especially promising tool with which to assess dam operation in less well-studied regions and to evaluate management attempts to reconstruct desired flow characteristics. Copyright ?? 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Tera Multithreaded Architecture and Unstructured Meshes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bokhari, Shahid H.; Mavriplis, Dimitri J.

1998-01-01

The Tera Multithreaded Architecture (MTA) is a new parallel supercomputer currently being installed at San Diego Supercomputing Center (SDSC). This machine has an architecture quite different from contemporary parallel machines. The computational processor is a custom design and the machine uses hardware to support very fine grained multithreading. The main memory is shared, hardware randomized and flat. These features make the machine highly suited to the execution of unstructured mesh problems, which are difficult to parallelize on other architectures. We report the results of a study carried out during July-August 1998 to evaluate the execution of EUL3D, a code that solves the Euler equations on an unstructured mesh, on the 2 processor Tera MTA at SDSC. Our investigation shows that parallelization of an unstructured code is extremely easy on the Tera. We were able to get an existing parallel code (designed for a shared memory machine), running on the Tera by changing only the compiler directives. Furthermore, a serial version of this code was compiled to run in parallel on the Tera by judicious use of directives to invoke the "full/empty" tag bits of the machine to obtain synchronization. This version achieves 212 and 406 Mflop/s on one and two processors respectively, and requires no attention to partitioning or placement of data issues that would be of paramount importance in other parallel architectures.

Determination of water depth with high-resolution satellite imagery over variable bottom types

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stumpf, Richard P.; Holderied, Kristine; Sinclair, Mark

2003-01-01

A standard algorithm for determining depth in clear water from passive sensors exists; but it requires tuning of five parameters and does not retrieve depths where the bottom has an extremely low albedo. To address these issues, we developed an empirical solution using a ratio of reflectances that has only two tunable parameters and can be applied to low-albedo features. The two algorithms--the standard linear transform and the new ratio transform--were compared through analysis of IKONOS satellite imagery against lidar bathymetry. The coefficients for the ratio algorithm were tuned manually to a few depths from a nautical chart, yet performed as well as the linear algorithm tuned using multiple linear regression against the lidar. Both algorithms compensate for variable bottom type and albedo (sand, pavement, algae, coral) and retrieve bathymetry in water depths of less than 10-15 m. However, the linear transform does not distinguish depths >15 m and is more subject to variability across the studied atolls. The ratio transform can, in clear water, retrieve depths in >25 m of water and shows greater stability between different areas. It also performs slightly better in scattering turbidity than the linear transform. The ratio algorithm is somewhat noisier and cannot always adequately resolve fine morphology (structures smaller than 4-5 pixels) in water depths >15-20 m. In general, the ratio transform is more robust than the linear transform.

Noise in Neuronal and Electronic Circuits: A General Modeling Framework and Non-Monte Carlo Simulation Techniques.

PubMed

Kilinc, Deniz; Demir, Alper

2017-08-01

The brain is extremely energy efficient and remarkably robust in what it does despite the considerable variability and noise caused by the stochastic mechanisms in neurons and synapses. Computational modeling is a powerful tool that can help us gain insight into this important aspect of brain mechanism. A deep understanding and computational design tools can help develop robust neuromorphic electronic circuits and hybrid neuroelectronic systems. In this paper, we present a general modeling framework for biological neuronal circuits that systematically captures the nonstationary stochastic behavior of ion channels and synaptic processes. In this framework, fine-grained, discrete-state, continuous-time Markov chain models of both ion channels and synaptic processes are treated in a unified manner. Our modeling framework features a mechanism for the automatic generation of the corresponding coarse-grained, continuous-state, continuous-time stochastic differential equation models for neuronal variability and noise. Furthermore, we repurpose non-Monte Carlo noise analysis techniques, which were previously developed for analog electronic circuits, for the stochastic characterization of neuronal circuits both in time and frequency domain. We verify that the fast non-Monte Carlo analysis methods produce results with the same accuracy as computationally expensive Monte Carlo simulations. We have implemented the proposed techniques in a prototype simulator, where both biological neuronal and analog electronic circuits can be simulated together in a coupled manner.

The relationship of undernutrition/psychosocial factors and developmental outcomes of children in extreme poverty in Ethiopia.

PubMed

Worku, Berhanu Nigussie; Abessa, Teklu Gemechu; Wondafrash, Mekitie; Vanvuchelen, Marleen; Bruckers, Liesbeth; Kolsteren, Patrick; Granitzer, Marita

2018-02-09

Extreme poverty is severe deprivation of basic needs and services. Children living in extreme poverty may lack adequate parental care and face increased developmental and health risks. However, there is a paucity of literature on the combined influences of undernutrition and psychosocial factors (such as limited play materials, playground, playtime, interactions of children with their peers and mother-child interaction) on children's developmental outcomes. The main objective of this study was, therefore, to ascertain the association of developmental outcomes and psychosocial factors after controlling nutritional indices. A community-based cross-sectional study design was used to compare the developmental outcomes of extremely poor children (N = 819: 420 girls and 399 boys) younger than 5 years versus age-matched reference children (N = 819: 414 girls and 405 boys) in South-West Ethiopia. Using Denver II-Jimma, development in personal-social, language, fine and gross motor skills were assessed, and social-emotional skills were evaluated using the Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional (ASQ: SE). Nutritional status was derived from the anthropometric method. Independent samples t-test was used to detect mean differences in developmental outcomes between extremely poor and reference children. Multiple linear regression analysis was employed to identify nutritional and psychosocial factors associated with the developmental scores of children in extreme poverty. Children in extreme poverty performed worse in all the developmental domains than the reference children. Among the 819 extremely poor children, 325 (39.7%) were stunted, 135 (16.5%) were underweight and 27 (3.3%) were wasted. The results also disclosed that stunting and underweightness were negatively associated with all the developmental skills. After taking into account the effects of stunting and being underweight on the developmental scores, it was observed that limited play activities, limited child-to-child interactions and mother-child relationships were negatively related mainly to gross motor and language performances of children in extreme poverty. Undernutrition and psychosocial factors were negatively related to the developmental outcomes, independently, of children living in extreme poverty. Intervention, for these children, should integrate home-based play-assisted developmental stimulation and nutritional rehabilitation.

Neural network approach for characterizing structural transformations by X-ray absorption fine structure

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Timoshenko, Janis; Frenkel, Anatoly I.; Cintins, Arturs

The knowledge of coordination environment around various atomic species in many functional materials provides a key for explaining their properties and working mechanisms. Many structural motifs and their transformations are difficult to detect and quantify in the process of work (operando conditions), due to their local nature, small changes, low dimensionality of the material, and/or extreme conditions. Here we use artificial neural network approach to extract the information on the local structure and its in-situ changes directly from the X-ray absorption fine structure spectra. We illustrate this capability by extracting the radial distribution function (RDF) of atoms in ferritic andmore » austenitic phases of bulk iron across the temperature-induced transition. Integration of RDFs allows us to quantify the changes in the iron coordination and material density, and to observe the transition from body-centered to face-centered cubic arrangement of iron atoms. Furthermore, this method is attractive for a broad range of materials and experimental conditions« less

Detecting Uniform Areas for Vicarious Calibration using Landsat TM Imagery: A Study using the Arabian and Saharan Deserts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hilbert, Kent; Pagnutti, Mary; Ryan, Robert; Zanoni, Vicki

2002-01-01

This paper discusses a method for detecting spatially uniform sites need for radiometric characterization of remote sensing satellites. Such information is critical for scientific research applications of imagery having moderate to high resolutions (<30-m ground sampling distance (GSD)). Previously published literature indicated that areas with the African Saharan and Arabian deserts contained extremely uniform sites with respect to spatial characteristics. We developed an algorithm for detecting site uniformity and applied it to orthorectified Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) imagery over eight uniform regions of interest. The algorithm's results were assessed using both medium-resolution (30-m GSD) Landsat 7 ETM+ and fine-resolution (<5-m GSD) IKONOS multispectral data collected over sites in Libya and Mali. Fine-resolution imagery over a Libyan site exhibited less than 1 percent nonuniformity. The research shows that Landsat TM products appear highly useful for detecting potential calibration sites for system characterization. In particular, the approach detected spatially uniform regions that frequently occur at multiple scales of observation.

Fine-scale population structure and the era of next-generation sequencing.

PubMed

Henn, Brenna M; Gravel, Simon; Moreno-Estrada, Andres; Acevedo-Acevedo, Suehelay; Bustamante, Carlos D

2010-10-15

Fine-scale population structure characterizes most continents and is especially pronounced in non-cosmopolitan populations. Roughly half of the world's population remains non-cosmopolitan and even populations within cities often assort along ethnic and linguistic categories. Barriers to random mating can be ecologically extreme, such as the Sahara Desert, or cultural, such as the Indian caste system. In either case, subpopulations accumulate genetic differences if the barrier is maintained over multiple generations. Genome-wide polymorphism data, initially with only a few hundred autosomal microsatellites, have clearly established differences in allele frequency not only among continental regions, but also within continents and within countries. We review recent evidence from the analysis of genome-wide polymorphism data for genetic boundaries delineating human population structure and the main demographic and genomic processes shaping variation, and discuss the implications of population structure for the distribution and discovery of disease-causing genetic variants, in the light of the imminent availability of sequencing data for a multitude of diverse human genomes.